In Her Skin
by Shortcake99
Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.
1. Chapter 1

A/N. I need to thank Serene Clamity for betaing this for me and helping me to make this into something I am very proud of.

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

* * *

_Tuesday 2__nd__ September 2014_

The outer building looked clean, almost like the outside walls had been scrubbed twice a week with anti-bacterial spray for the last three years. It looked like the inside of a surgical theatre, no decoration, simple – to the point. The tall stature of the main building made it look intimidating, like it was going to stare down at you until you were strong enough to leave. The glass doors bared the company name, along with its logo and sponsorship partner. It was every inch the professional company that it claimed to be on its international website.

Yet one person who did not appreciate the cleanliness and overall outstanding hygienic appearance was Letty Ortiz.

She had been forced to attend, her visit thrust upon her by her mother five hours before she was told to pack a suitcase ready for a three month long stay in one of LA's most renowned clinics for teenagers and young adults. Her rebellious nature had not been tuned down over the years and her lack of caring for what anyone thought was 'best' for her showed through as she miserably sat in the car watching the skyscrapers of Los Angeles whizz by, glum face and all. The tension in the car was unimaginable as Letty kept up the silence that she had vowed to keep since being told, not asked, told, to pack her bags. She had tried to argue but it was no use. She was going like it or not.

_Friday 29__th__ August 2014_

"_Letty, come down for a sec. I need to talk to you about something," Lena shouted up the stairs as she thread her fingers through her hair in anxiety._

"_What do you want? I'm busy?" Letty shouted back, quickly shoving the bloody blade under the tap to wash away the blood. The top of her thigh was also oozing the red liquid._

"_I've got something to tell you. The longer you put it off, the harder you'll take it," Lena replied, tapping her finger nails against the wall as she wandered what was keeping her daughter._

_Letty sighed in annoyance as she listened to her mother. She knew there was no way she was getting out of going downstairs. Putting her blade back into the cupboard, she quickly rolled off a few sheets of toilet paper and pressed them to her leg, hoping to stop the blood flow. The blood from the small cuts did not take long to stop, the blade not managing to get as deep as Letty had previously hoped. Pulling a pair of sweat pants on so a tight material would not rub over the healing cuts and resume the bleeding, Letty bounded down the stairs. She came to a stop before her mother. Lena led her daughter to the sofa. _

"_Letty, I know I promised to let you deal with your cutting on your own but I can't do that anymore. You're hurting yourself more than ever now and I can't let you destroy your life like this."_

"_What have you done?"_

"_It's for your own good."_

"_WHAT HAVE YOU DONE" Letty screeched, rising from her seat on the sofa and standing over Lena with her finger pointing in the older woman's face._

"_I checked you into a clinic," Lena said quietly._

"_You checked me into a clinic," Letty repeated. "You checked me into a clinic knowing that I would hate every minute of it."_

"_You need help, Letty. I can't let you waste away like this."_

"_Where is it? The clinic, up the road?"_

"_LA," Lena mumbled._

"_Excuse me?" Letty raised her voice again. "So not only are you checking me into a clinic in the first place, you've decided to choose one on the other side of the country?"_

"_It can be a new start," Lena said hopefully. She knew Letty would take it bad but not this bad. _

"_For who? Me or you?"_

"_For both of us. We can start again. Build our lives somewhere else."_

"_How long am I going for?" Letty asked._

"_Three months."_

"_That's sorted then. You can re-build your life in La. I, on the other hand, will be going to this stupid clinic and then leaving and coming back to New York."_

"_Okay."_

_Letty was taken aback. She did not expect a simple 'okay' from her mother. She expected more of an argument, more of a fight. But Lena had agreed to let her leave as soon as her three months were up so she would take that deal. Three months did not seem like a long time. She could easily go through that, co-operating enough to satisfy her mother and the people at the clinic but without really listening. She would work a plan out somehow._

"_I'll go pack my stuff then," Letty said begrudgingly. She did not want her mother to know that she would not be taking it seriously so she played reluctant. _

_Tuesday 2__nd__ September 2014 (continued)_

Now, thanks to a recent update from the sat nav, they were only thirty minutes away from the clinic. Letty had managed to cram all her clothes into one large suitcase and a small rucksack. Her blades had been neatly tucked into clothes. There was no way she would manage to get through three months without making a single cut. Letty had not spoken to Lena since they left the house and boarded their flight from the JFK airport to LAX. Luckily for Letty, the airport scanners had picked up her blades as just razor blades and her luggage was waved through.

"Now we're only thirty minutes away, Letty."

"I know. I heard the sat nav too," Letty said, leaning back against her chair with a glum look on her face.

They had rented a car from the airport for three weeks so that Lena would have time to look for a new one. The hire car only had three doors but it was cheaper than a five door and she didn't really need a bigger one at the moment. Letty would be in the clinic so it was just for Lena to use. She had already been online and looked at potential cars. The pair pulled up to the clinic and Lena parked the car before getting out and pulling Letty's suitcase out the boot. She mentally wished everyone at the clinic good luck when dealing with her daughter.

* * *

The inside of the centre was exactly how it had been advertised in the twelve page long brochure that Lena had given Letty to read on the plane. The information booklet had given Letty a step by step guide of what to expect when living and rehabilitating at the Elizabeth Rose Centre. The brochure told her that the centre was split into four different wings – North, East, South and West. Each wing was specifically designed and equipped with the latest technology to help maximise the recovery process. It was the kind of centre that any parent would want their child to be if they found themselves in a difficult situation.

"_Is there a reason you gave me this?" Letty questioned on the plane. She did not need an insight of the centre, she was not planning on staying there long._

"_I thought it might help you when you get there. This way you'll have some idea of what to expect. I'm just trying to give you a helping hand," Lena replied before carrying on reading her magazine. _

"_Yeah, helping me out. Just like this whole fiasco in the first place," Letty mumbled under her breath._

_Lena slammed down her magazine and checked around her to make sure no one was listening. "Listen here. This is one of LA's top centres. It is not cheap. I am trying to do the right thing as a mother to help you. You don't want to go, you've made that clear enough but I will not stand for you being outright rude to me because of it. You are going and you will do it quietly and politely. Otherwise there will be serious trouble. Understood?"_

"_Yeah."_

Letty and Lena walked up to the front desk and were greeted by a wide smile and an annoying high pitched voice. Her long blonde hair had been swept back into a pony tail and her eyes were heavily defined by black eyeliner. Lena and Letty looked at each other and both couldn't help but express a smile at the blonde's appearance. She reminded them of a young girl who had lived in their neighbourhood before moving away the year before last. Once high school had started, she had found out the advantages of make-up and had never gone a day without it.

"May I help you?" The receptionist asked.

"Yeah, we'd like to check in."

"Name please."

"Leticia Ortiz."

"Oh yes," the receptionist typed some information into the computer before standing up, grabbing an envelope and coming round to stand with Lena and Letty. "Okay, so if you want to follow me I'll lead you to your room."

The trio walked through the main reception and through a corridor that led to the West Wing. The West Wing was specifically designed for self-harmers and included a top of the range counsellor that was qualified in helping those suffering from self-harm. The West Wing was also divided into three different wards – A, B and C. Each ward had space for eight people at a time. Before the wing was separated into the three wards, a social area sporting a foosball table, a mini basketball hoop and a collection of bean bags.

"Well, this is the West Wing," the receptionist said, still sporting her high pitched voice.

"Looks, cosy," said Lena.

"Yeah. Where do I sleep?" Letty asked.

"Um, just this way."

Lena followed the receptionist into West C but before Letty could follow them she was pulled aside by a fierce looking girl.

"So you're the new girl," she commented, looking Letty up and down.

"Well have you seen me before?" Letty replied. At the girl's blank look, Letty smirked. "I guess you can work out that I'm the new girl then."

Smiling slightly to herself, Letty moved towards West C and caught sight of her mother turning into a room at the end of the corridor. As they walked through the doorway, an electronic buzzer went off, startling both Lena and Letty. The receptionist held her hand out for Letty's suitcase and Lena handed it over. Hoisting the case onto a bench outside the room, the receptionist opened it and started pulling out Letty's clothes before she found the five pack of razor blades that Letty had tucked in the middle of a stack of clothes. Lena looked at Letty disapprovingly.

"As you can probably guess, these aren't allowed in here," the receptionist said as she held up the blades to Letty.

"It was worth a try."

The suitcase was pulled through the hidden metal detector in the door once more and as it was given the all clear, the trio entered Letty's new room. The walls were bare and had been painted a bright white. The carpet had been replaced with flooring after an incident two years ago in which a girl had harmed and dripped blood onto the carpet and stained it. A simple beige wardrobe was placed in the corner of the room and a single bed was pushed up against the wall. An ensuite bathroom was adjoined to the room and sported a toilet, sink and shower.

"I'll leave you to say your goodbyes," the receptionist said before giving Lena directions to the exit and leaving.

"They said I can see you every fortnight when I rung up," Lena said as they sat down on Letty's bed.

"The new house will keep you busy," Letty said comfortingly.

"Hopefully, it's going to be strange not having you around but this place will do you good in the long run. You just need to stick with it."

"I'll try. I want this to go away but the idea of counsellors prodding into every part of my life is a bit nerving, you know?" Letty said, surprising Lena with her honesty about the situation.

"They're only trying to help. You'll just have to learn to get used to them. Just work towards my visits. They even said that if you do really well you might be able to leave a couple of weeks early. It all depends on how much effort you put in."

"I know but it's hard."

"Come here," Lena said as she reached over for a hug. The older woman embraced her daughter in a hug before pulling away and walked over towards the door. "I'll see you in two weeks okay?" And with that she was gone.

* * *

"And this here leads us up to the canteen where West and South Wing both meet at one 'o' clock until two 'o' clock to eat lunch. Obviously East Wing are on specialised diets and eat lunch together in the East Wing dining area."

Letty was already bored. While she understood why she needed the tour and that if she did not have it she would get lost easily, the constant commentary was getting on her nerves. Giving an exhausted sigh, Letty followed Sofia Toretto, owner and manager of the Elizabeth Rose centre for teenagers and young adults, into the North Wing. The North Wing was the section that gave the counselling and the schooling area of the centre. There were eight separate rooms including a science lab and a cooking room. As told by the booklet, the centre felt that it was important that when deemed fit for release, every patient should be able to cook a proper meal in preparation for the future.

"At the Elizabeth Rose Centre," Sofia began, turning around to make sure that Letty was paying attention. After all, she had heard her sighs. "We have a number of patients who have not yet finished school education. Here, we try to give them the education that they would usually get in school. As your therapy sessions take place on a Wednesday and a Saturday, you will be learning along with South C and East C. Once we have finished the tour, I will give you your timetable and you will be able to settle in."

"I still have to go to school?" Letty asked, clearly not impressed. She had never been one for school to start with. This experience was slowly building up to be her worst experience ever.

"Yep."

"Up mine," Letty mumbled quietly.

"And now, we're coming up to the counselling offices. Each Wing has their own counsellor that is qualified in what they're suffering. I'll see if Gisele, your counsellor, is free."

Sofia left Letty standing at the entrance of the counselling area. Letty watched her walk into the office at the far corner of the room and knock quietly on the door before going in. She did not see the point of counsellors, they were just nosy and irritating people who wanted to know everything about someone's life. If Letty wanted the world to know what was going on in her head she would have written an autobiography. Sofia walked out the office followed by a tall, slender woman. She looked no older that twenty five and had a smart business suit on.

"Letty, this is Gisele. The West Wing counsellor," Sofia introduced.

Gisele smiled at Letty and stuck her hand out. "Nice to meet you. What section are you in?"

"C," Letty mumbled with a frown on her face.

"Ah, we'll be having our sessions on Wednesdays and Saturdays then."

"I've already been told," Letty said, glaring at Gisele. She already did not like the woman.

Gisele held her hands in front of her as she watched the young girl. From her initial observations she could tell that she had not been willingly checked into the clinic. She suspected a parent or guardian. She was not a stranger to people not liking her because of her job. Many resented her because of the way she worked but in the end she was helping them and if they could not see that, then that was fine.

"Okay, thank you Gisele, Letty will be seeing you Wednesday then," Sofia said, trying to quickly hurry on the conversation. She did not want the atmosphere to be too tense before they had even started the sessions.

"I'll see you on Wednesday then."

Gisele walked back into her office, Sofia and Letty walking towards Sofia's own office. Sofia headed straight towards a file cabinet and pulled out a sheet of paper. Sofia's assistant had left a copy of Letty's timetable in with her notes while Sofia was giving the tour. Letty accepted the timetable and had a quick scan over it. Her eyes widened at some of the lessons and the addition of 'group therapy' every week did not sit well with her. As well as school and talking with counsellors, talking with peers was not one of her strong points. Things were quickly turning bad.

"Group sessions?" Letty questioned, looking up at Sofia.

"Yes, you don't seem too happy about that."

"Isn't this a conversation I should be having with Gisele?"

"You're not stupid, Letty," Sofia said, changing the conversation. "I know you don't want to be here, you've made that pretty clear but while you are here, I want you to try and make an effort." Sofia paused, studying Letty's face looking for a reaction. "Your mother is just looking out for you. She wants you to get better. If you're not doing it for yourself at least do it for her."

"You don't know anything. Don't try and make this about my mum. It has nothing to do with her, are we finished?" Letty fired back.

"Letty, I don't want it to look like I'm interfering but I really think you need to sort this-" Sofia carried on before she was interrupted by Letty.

"Like I said, you don't know anything. The quicker you stop interfering the better things will be. Are we finished?"

At Sofia's nod, Letty left the office, now quietly grateful for the tour. Remembering the way, Letty found herself back at the West Wing. Looks came her way as she walked into the social area. She was the new girl, of course she was going to be interesting. Walking straight past them, she walked down to her room and collapsed onto her bed. Her suitcase was still lying open with half of her belongings messily shoved in the wardrobe. After Lena had left, Letty had blue tacked a photo of the pair next to her bed. No matter how much resentment she felt towards her, Letty still loved her mother.

Sitting up, Letty leant forward and rummaged through her bags before pulling out a sharpened bobby pin. It had been a good way to carry around a weapon at all times and it never drew attention at her old school. It was also a good back up with her blades were taken off her. It was the ultimate cover. Walking into the bathroom, Letty pointed her toes to reveal the veins in her foot. Starting at her toes, she dragged the grip down her foot along the vein until blood dripped into the bottom of the shower. Once she had made her incision, Letty grabbed one of the cups off the sink and filled it up before using it to wash away the blood.

No one would ever find out.

* * *

Sofia walked into her house like she was carrying a sixty kilogram rucksack on her back. She could tell that Mia had popped round to cook for the weekly family dinner from the smell of Spaghetti Bolognese wafting through from the kitchen. Sofia kicked off her shoes at the door and slid her feet into her slippers, the soft feeling comforting after spending the day walking away in heels. Still armed with heavy files and her handbag, Sofia bundled into the kitchen and collapsed down into one of the chairs. Mia looked round at her mother and smiled before giving the Bolognese a final stir and sitting down.

"Rough day?" Mia asked, seeing the exhaustion in her mother's features.

"Eh, I'll tell you over dinner. Save telling your dad later as well."

Sofia gave Mia a final smile before grabbing the files and making her way into the office. She dumped the files on her desk for her to do later before making her way upstairs to change. Her white shirt and black pencil skirt were replaced with a baggy top and a pair of jeans. A pull on her hair band released a long tide of straight, brown hair down her back. Exiting her room, she poked her head inside the door of Dom's. Her son was laying on the bed, reading a fitness magazine while taking notes. Sofia walked further into the room after checking the coast was clear and sat down on the bed.

"What you doing?" Sofia asked, peering over to read the magazine.

"Taking notes. Hobbs asked us to pick out the top ten most important bits in the magazine. No idea why though, we're not even doing this."

"Maybe he's just keeping you on your toes," Sofia suggested.

"Maybe."

"Mia's done dinner, I think it'll be ready soon."

"Is she doing Spaghetti Bolognese?" Dom asked. It had been his favourite since Sofia had cooked it for the family when he was a child. She had then passed the recipe onto Mia.

"Of course."

Dom's facial expression became one of delight and Sofia laughed. From the age of seven upwards, Dom would ask every week to have Spaghetti Bolognese. If he had done something good and was given the choice of the night's meal, it was Spaghetti Bolognese every time. Sofia rubbed Dom's head like she used to when he was a child. The smooth sensation still felt strange on her fingertips, his new bald look still taking some time to become familiar. He had shaved it off after his fluffy hair got too annoying. The bald look was complimentary to his features but it was still strange.

"Dinner," Mia shouted up the stairs.

Tony seemed to have an inkling for whenever food was ready. As Dom and Sofia walked down the stairs, Tony walked through the door, his shoes kicked off next to Sofia's and his paperwork dumped on his office desk. Loosening his tie, Tony took his usual seat at the table along with the others as Mia brought a bowl of Spaghetti, a bowl of sauce and a bowl of Bolognese and put them all in the middle of the table. Mia brought a large spoon for the Bolognese and some tongs for the Spaghetti before sliding into her seat. Dom took the first helpings and filled the bottom of his bowl with Spaghetti before filling the top half with Bolognese.

"Good day darling?" Tony asked Sofia as he ate his plain Spaghetti. He was the reason that the Bolognese wasn't mixed with the Spaghetti. He did not like it.

"We had a new arrival today as you know."

"And?"

"She's a handful."

"What do you mean, mum?" Mia asked.

"She doesn't want to be there. Her mum checked her into the West Wing. She doesn't like Gisele already and the idea of group therapy sessions has her less than pleased," Sofia said as she wrapped her Spaghetti around her fork.

"Where's she from?" Dom asked.

"New York, her mum's moved here with her so she can come to the centre. I spoke to her earlier and told her to do it for her mum but she just told me that I didn't know anything."

"She sounds stubborn. By the sounds of it, she has never had the attention that she knows she'll achieve here at home before," Dom said.

"Yeah. I'm a bit worried about how the others will take to her. I don't think she's one for pleasing people. She'll speak her mind whenever she wants regardless of the consequences. I can't see her getting on with half of the people she'll be with.

"She can only help herself now. There's only so much you and Gisele can do."

For the rest of the dinner, several conversations were thrown around the table, varying from the latest sports news to university essays. After the last of the Spaghetti had been scraped off the plates, Mia got up and gathered their plates, taking them over to the sink and loading them into the dishwasher. They had had many arguments in the past about whose turn it was to wash, wipe and put away the dishes so they got a dishwasher when Dom was a teenager. The only conditions were that they had to empty the dishwasher on their days. They all had two days apart from Sofia, who only had one because she did the other housework.

"Right, I am full and I'm going up to bed. I've got a test in the morning that I need to do really well on. I can't mess this one up," Mia said, walking around and giving a kiss to each of the trio.

"Good luck. I might be gone in the morning so I'll see you at the weekend if I don't see you before," Dom said. He had his own flat and only stayed when he could not be bothered to go home – or if there was no food in the fridge.

"Alright, night."

It only took two hours before everybody else was in bed. Sofia and Tony had been up since six and late nights did not work for them anymore. Dom went up twenty minutes after to finish the rest of his note taking. However, it was only an hour before the magazine dropped off the bed and onto the floor as he fell asleep on top of his covers.

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	2. Chapter 2

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of the LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

* * *

_Wednesday 3__rd__ September 2014_

Letty's first Wednesday session with Gisele came around pretty quickly, not that she wanted it to. After giving her timetable a closer look, Letty had found out that her therapy session was the first one of the day, given at nine o' clock to ten 'o' clock. After the daily wake up at eight am, Letty had rolled, literally, out of bed and laid there for another ten minutes. The thought of her upcoming session just made her groan and she pulled the covers from the bed and over her head while she laid on the floor. A knock on the door disrupted her only minutes later and she finally gave in to the fact that she had to get up.

Her zombified walk to the shower led her to walking into the wall twice before she realised that she needed to take a few steps to the right. Pulling her pyjamas over her head and past her hips, she made a quick dash to the shower. The hot water on her skin made her previous scars stand out and the pinkish colouring was a painful reminder of why she was here in the first place. Bypassing washing her hair, Letty quickly scrubbed over her body and rinsed away the bubbles. She jumped out the shower and pulled on a pair of jeans and an old t-shirt.

"Letty, have you not left yet?" Sofia said as she run into Letty leaving the West Wing.

"I'm leaving now, stop stressing. I'm being a good girl and attending my sessions," Letty said, brushing past Sofia and continuing down the corridors until she got to the North Wing.

Gisele was already leaning against her door as Letty walked towards her office. She was already five minutes late, only further confirming Gisele's suspicions that Letty was by no means here of her own accord. Gisele greeted Letty with a smile after a raise of her eyebrows and received a blank look in return.

"Only five minutes late, I've had worse," Gisele commented as she sat behind her desk. "Take a seat."

Letty sat down in the gestured seat and wiggled until she was comfortable. The pair sat in silence as Gisele pulled out a thin folder of Letty's notes, the weight yet to be increased by several notes from the counselling sessions along with grades and feedback from her academic teachers. So far, the folder had basic information such as her background, personal information and some notifications given by Lena on what sort of things Letty liked and what she did not. This way Gisele could determine what relationship Letty had with her mother and if it was a contributing factor in her reasoning to self-harm.

"So, Letty," Gisele began. "Let's start with you telling me a bit about your background, where you're from, etcetera.

"You have all that information in that file," Letty replied, clearly not impressed.

"I know. But I want to hear it from you. Paper has a strange way of changing the meaning of things."

"Fine. I was born in New York."

"It's a start. Tell me about your parents."

"No."

Gisele grabbed her pen and started to jot down notes. Like many other patients, Gisele could see Letty's eyes following the motion of the pen, wondering what was being written. She had learnt a long time ago that hiding what was being written form someone only caused problems and often made patients to withdraw from talking in fear of what would be written down. From this, Gisele had her own method – show whoever was with her what she had written about them and give them reasons why she had written it. Yes; it was time consuming. But in the long run it helped considerably.

"You want to see what I wrote," Gisele stated, taking Letty slightly by surprise.

"Is there anyone who doesn't?" Letty replied, wondering where the conversation was going.

"Here you go," Gisele said, passing over the notes for Letty to read. "Basically I wrote that you were withdrawn and unwilling to talk about family life. Would you say that's fair?"

"Yeah, I'm not one for talking about stuff."

"I guessed. However, I still need something for you so I'm going to set you some homework. I need you to write down one happy memory from your childhood and one bad memory and have it done for our next session. Can you do that for me?"

"Yeah, I guess so,"

"Thank you. You can leave now."

As Letty left the office, she ran into Neela, the girl staying in the room next to hers. From what she had overheard, she had been here for only a few weeks more than Letty and had already established a strong group of friends. Giving Neela a look up and down, she was startled by the sound of the girl's voice.

"Who do you think you are?" Neela said.

"Letty, commonly known as the new girl," Letty replied, just as flat toned as Neela.

"We were all new at some point. I assume you just came out of your session with Gisele."

"Yeah, I got set homework." Letty did not know why she was telling Neela all of this but she seemed like a girl to tell it to.

"I got homework too on my first session. One happy, one bad memory from your childhood?" Letty nodded. "I think everyone got that so don't feel like you're the only one."

"I wouldn't know. I think you're the first person I've spoke to apart from someone yesterday. No idea who it was though."

"Can I give you a bit of advice?" Neela asked.

"What?"

"I don't want to sound like every other person here and I'm sure you got the speech from Sofia about giving everything a go but give Gisele a chance. She's a lot different to every other counsellor you've ever been too. She's open about everything she writes about you and doesn't hide her impressions about you. If you give her a bit of time to do her magic you'll be surprised."

"You're right. You do sound a lot like Sofia."

Neela laughed and gave Letty a departing smile as she walked towards Gisele's office. What she had said had confirmed everything Letty was already thinking. Gisele was different. But she would give it a few sessions before she decided if Gisele was different for better or for worse.

* * *

"Who's that?" Letty asked Neela, taking a bite of her slice of pizza.

"Amelia Sanchez. What's she doing here?" Neela pondered.

"Eating lunch?"

"You think you're hilarious. She's part of the East Wing. They eat on their own with the rest of their ward."

"So why is she here?" Letty asked.

"I have no idea."

Amelia Sanchez looked like your bog standard high school bitch. Her hair had been straightened to the point where it looked like pieces of straw and her face looked like it had tested every single bit of MAC makeup ever. Her eyebrows were badly drawn on and her eyelashes looked like spider's legs. She was everything that Letty hated put into one single person. From the looks and sounds that Neela was making beside her towards Amelia, Letty could tell that she felt exactly the same way she did. It was the probably the 'she is such a ugly, dumbass bitch' that did it.

"Oh, look who we have here. Nice little Neela," Amelia said as she walked over to the pair.

"Shut up Amelia. Why aren't you in the East Wing canteen?"

"Don't you worry ickle bickle Neela," Amelia said before she noticed Letty. "And who are you?"

Letty looked up at Amelia and raised her eyebrows. "Doesn't ickle bickle Amelia know who I am?" Letty said mockingly.

"You really are a bitch aren't you?"

"Perhaps. But that makes you one as well then."

"And why is that?"

"Well, with half the cosmetics counter on your face and your hair able to act like a horse's bed-" Letty started before she could finish.

"I'm sorry, what?" Amelia said as she advanced towards Letty. Her eyes narrowed into slits and she dropped her bag onto the table. Despite Neela's whispered warnings, Letty stood up to meet her eye to eye.

"You heard me."

"I don't think you quite understand who you're messing with."

"I'm sure you'll be able to inform me," Letty said as the room fell silent. Neela let her head fall into her hands – this was not going to end well.

"Oh, what's that on your wrist?" Amelia asked.

"I think you already know."

"Oh yes, poor you. No wonder you're in here."

Gasps came from every corner of the room as Amelia brought up Letty's self harm. It was a well known rule and courtesy that you never mentioned why another patient was enrolled in the centre. If caught, it could lead to serious consequences and all patients were told upon arrival to report any of these issues to the nearest member of staff. However, this was not Amelia's first time at this and she was currently on what was supposedly her last warning, not like she acted like it. One of the younger patients had already fetched a member of staff and Amelia and Letty were taken to Sofia's office.

"Girls, I am very disappointed in both of you," Sofia started, a disapproving look on her face. After being interrupted in the canteen, they had been led to Sofia's office and told to sit down.

"First of all I just want to say that I did nothing wrong," Letty said before she could be accused of saying anything she did not.

"Yeah right," Amelia muttered under her breath.

"And what do you mean by that," Letty erupted, turning to face her new enemy before Sofia interrupted them.

"Girls. Letty, I am issuing you with your first official warning at the centre. I am very disappointed that I need to give you one this early on at your stay but I hope that this gives you an incentive to work harder in the future. Amelia however, we both know that this is not your first altercation of this kind and you are very slowly losing your place within the centre. But we will not be giving up on you so, like Letty, I am issuing you with an official warning. Note that this is your last warning, and this time I'm not joking."

Both girls were stunned into silence with Sofia's mini speech and both left in silence as they were dismissed. Whilst they walked back together, they did not utter a single word or sound to each other before they reached the canteen and split to their respective groups of friends. In the time that Letty had been absent, a group of girls had gathered around Neela and asked for the gossip. As she moved closer, Letty recognised them as others from the West Wing.

"Letty," Neela called out as she spotted the younger girl moving towards her. "How did it go?"

Letty huffed out a long breath as she sat down and turned to face Neela. "I'm really starting to dislike Sofia now."

"Why? I thought she was alright."

"You've never had to prove something to her. She didn't even let me say anything. It was like she'd already made up her mind before I even walked in the room," Letty ranted. Like the rest of her family, she was never one to go without a say and when it occasionally did happen, she did not like it one bit.

"That's harsh, even for her."

"And then the other day she was telling me how I should be here for my mum and that I should do it for her. I mean, what the hell?"

"That does seem out of order. I don't see why she got involved like that. Definitely stay clear of her in the future."

"I plan to, don't worry," Letty said before nodding her head towards Amelia. "That is unless she has anything to do with it."

Letty and Neela fell into a silence and carried on eating their lunch. The rest of the day passed by with no significant events with Letty getting to know more of the West Wing, especially those in the C ward. With her first set of lessons coming up the next day, Letty figured that it would be a good idea to start friendships now. There was always the possibility that she would end up sitting next to a stranger if she did not become familiar with her peers now.

* * *

_Thursday 4__th__ September 2014_

The next day's later start suited Letty brilliantly and she entered the canteen with a better attitude than she left with the day before. Her conversation with Sofia the previous day was still heavy on her mind and she had not yet forgiven the older woman for what had been said. On a lighter note, Letty had now found friendships with Kieran Dillon, a fellow West C patient who had experienced the centre for the last fourteen months and Poppy Stewart, a newbie like Letty that was that was in South C. Both were easy going and relaxed, Letty's sort of people.

"We've got English first," Neela informed Letty. "I've got a spare sear next to me so I'll see if you can sit next to me."

"Who's the teacher?" Letty asked, taking a bite of her buttered toast.

"Sophie Trinh but everyone just goes with Sophie. She's nice."

"Just nice?"

"She's one of them teachers who will let you get away with murder as long as you do all your work. If you do your work properly and to the expected standards then you are welcome to talk all you want. If you don't then you're probably better off coming to class wearing a bullet proof vest."

"That bad?"

"That bad."

The morning bell went and everyone filtered out of the room. Neela led Letty towards the English classroom and introduced her to Sophie. The young Asian woman wore dark, skinny jeans that hugged her toned legs. A pale pink blazer covered up her simple, white shirt. She added inches to her height with a pair of black heels while her black hair was left loose around her shoulders. She looked kind enough and she held a copy of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men in her hand. With a kind smile, she invited Letty over to her desk to discuss the seating arrangements.

"Okay, Letty. I'm Sophie Trinh but Sophie will do just fine. Now from my files I can see that you are in the same wing and ward as Neela, am I correct?" Neela said. At Letty's nod of agreement she continued. "So for now, I'll sit you next to her and we'll go from there okay?"

"Sounds good to me," Letty said before she took a seat next to Neela.

"Okay guys, today we're going to start a new book – John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. Around the room, I have stuck up eight answers about the background of Of Mice and Men, the questions are on the board. You've got until quarter past to have them written out, in full sentences, in your books. Go."

After being handed a new book by Sophie, Letty followed Neela around the classroom and they took it in turns to match an answer to a question. Between them the eight pairs were quickly completed and they were the first back in their seats. They had decided to shorthand write the questions and answers in the back of their books and then change them into full sentences in the front of their books. Neela had used the technique many times before and Letty eagerly copied her. While the novel was new to the class, it was not to Letty. Lena had made her daughter study the book for school. Until she realised it was the wrong book.

"Okay, first question. What did Of Mice and Men develop into?"

Poppy raised her hand. "Of Mice and Men developed into a play and a movie."

"Great answer, Poppy. When was Of Mice and Men written?"

"Of Mice and Men was written in 1937," Letty answered after raising her hand.

"That's good, Letty. Next question."

Sophie went through the rest of the questions until all eight answers had been paired with their questions. They quickly moved onto the first page of the Chapter One, Sophie instructing the class to turn to the first page and listen as she read.

'_A few miles south of Soledad, the Salinas River drops in close to the hillside bank and runs deep and green. The water is warm too, for it has slipped twinkling over the yellow sands in the sunlight before reaching the narrow pool. On one side of the river the golden foothill slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains, but on the valley side the water is lined with trees – willows fresh and green with every spring, carrying in their lower leaf junctures the debris of the winter's flooding; and sycamores with mottled, white, recumbent limbs and branches that arch over the pool. On the sandy bank under the trees the leaves lie deep and so crisp that a lizard makes a great skittering if he runs among them. Rabbits come out of the brush to sit on the sand in the evening, and the damp flats are covered with the night tracks of 'coons, and with the spread pads of dogs from the ranches, and with the split-wedge tracks of deer that come to drink in the dark._

"So from the first paragraph, what can we tell?" Sophie asked the group.

Letty was the first one to raise her hand. "Steinbeck is very descriptive in his writing. His writing style allows the use of imagery, giving the reader a visual representation of the Salinas River without actually showing them a photo. Some of his adjectives, such as 'narrow' and 'lower' allow the reader to get a scaled version of the place. For example, 'narrow' helps create the visual of a tight stream of water along with a enclosed space."

Sophie smiled as Letty finished her analysis of the passage. She was already impressed the new pupil. "Wow, Letty, that was an excellent breakdown of the paragraph. Has anyone else got anything to add?"

Neela raised her hand. "I was thinking about the lexical choice. The way Steinbeck uses 'deep green' as opposed to any other colour. The 'green' suggests a peaceful place with a relaxed environment where anything is happy and has a really light atmosphere. Green is very stereotypically a neutral colour and helps express that river itself and its surroundings hold no anger or sadness."

"Again, another excellent piece of analysis," Sophie said, pleased with both of the students. She knew that Neela was a good student, achieving high grades in her description of Harper Lee's, To Kill A Mockingbird. "We've quickly run out of time for today so pack up and you can leave when the bell goes. Letty, can I have a word when you're finished please?"

"Yeah, of course," Letty said before making her way over to Sophie's desk. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to say that you were excellent today. You pleasantly surprised me."

"Thank you."

Letty left Sophie at her desk and met up with Neela outside the classroom. Neela gave Letty a big smile along with a couple of winks. "I never realised you were that smart. You struck me as the 'can't be bothered' type."

"I guess I'm just a bag full of surprises."

* * *

After English came History. Sean Boswell had been teaching the subject ever since the centre had opened four years ago. As the class entered the classroom, he noticed the new face that he had previously been told about. From the staffroom gossip and general chit chatter, Sean had already come to the conclusion that Letty would be trouble when it came to the classroom. From what he had heard yesterday, she was already on Sofia's bad side, had been in an altercation with another patient and in return had received her first warning. He was not looking forward to teaching her.

"Okay then in you come. Settle down, settle down," Sean almost shouted over the noise. The hustle and bustle of teenagers was always a noisy event.

"Hi, I'm Letty, the new girl. Where do you want me to sit?" Letty asked, surprisingly nicely.

"Who do you know?"

"I know Neela quite well. I know Kieran and Poppy as well but the others I haven't really spoke to."

"I'll sit you next to Neela for now but if I think you're not getting on with your work one of you will be moved. Got it?"

"Got it."

Letty took her seat next to Neela and maintained eye contact with Sean until he turned around to the board. With Neela's quick nudge and a confused look on her face, Letty quickly explained that she didn't think Sean liked her and that they must be on their best behaviour if they wanted to stay seating next to each other. A quiet chatter started in the classroom as Sean handed out booklets to every pupil, each entitled, 'Vietnam c1950-1975'. After last term's visit to Europe, it had been decided that this term's topic would be set at home in America.

"Okay, so as you can see this term we will be looking at the Vietnam War. We all know that this is a sensitive topic among some Americans so just respect that. We're going to start with the first page, volunteers for reading?" Sean said. At Poppy's raised hand, he gave her a nod and she started to read.

"For centuries, Vietnam was divided into two parts, the North and the South. Although it was united for a short time in the 19th century, both parts had been involved in several wars with each other. In 1887, Vietnam was joined by its neighbours, Laos and Cambodia, to create colony called the French Indochina. However, during World War Two, Japan gained control of Vietnam, a movement which stripped the country of food and let thousands of Vietnamese dead from starvation. When Japan was defeated, the French took control once more but North Vietnam wanted independence."

"Thank you, Poppy. Now in your pairs, I want you to discuss why North Vietnam may have wanted independence from France. You've got ten minutes."

Letty and Neela both turned to face each other, booklets in hand. With hurried words, they discussed North Vietnam's need for independence before quickly moving onto the next topic of Amelia. After yesterday's altercation, neither girl had seen or spoken to Amelia but both of them knew that it would not be the last they saw of her. A loud timer sounded and Sean gained the class's attention.

"Okay, Jordan. What have you got for me?"

"I think they were fed up of being owned."

"In what way?"

"North Vietnam were probably feeling a bit like a pet. Everything they wanted all depended on how France felt. As the supposed owners of the country, France would control the food, people and trading. If that was me, I wouldn't want to be controlled like that."

"That's right. North Vietnam was fed up with being a puppet. They wanted to own themselves, just like many other countries."

Flurries of hands were raised and they spent the rest of the lesson discussing independence and what it would feel like to be owned as a community. The topic strayed off topic several times as many different opinions were formed and changed. Each individual had given a piece of information except Letty, something that was not unnoticed by Sean. As the conversation finally died down, Sean called on Letty for her explanation.

"So, Letty. What do you think about the independence?"

"I think," she started before pausing slightly. "I think that North Vietnam went through the same feelings as America did years ago. They wanted freedom and to be themselves. It's sort of like a teenager. A rebellious North Vietnam against their parents France.

"Very good," Sean said. As Sophie had been previously, Sean was pleased with how Letty had fit into the class.

As the end of the day came drawing in, the staff gathered in the staff room for the daily catch up on their lessons, therapy sessions and all round gossip. One particular topic of conversation was Letty.

"I found her really nice," said Sophie. "She gave me a really detailed analysis on a paragraph. It was as if she had read the book before. She's a breath of fresh air in the classroom."

"I like her as well," Han Lue, the science teacher, added. He had taught her that afternoon and she had shown none of the attitude that she showed against Amelia. Her work ethic was amazing throughout all subjects and based off the lessons they had had today, none of them could see the girl described in her records.

"I think the attitude is there somewhere," Tej Parker, the finance teacher, said. He had been the last of the teachers to be given the pleasure of Letty's company but unlike the rest of the subjects, she seemed to dislike anything to do with numbers. While her maths was not weak, her willingness to do it was – a problem Tej could see flaring up continuingly during her time at the centre.

Back at the West Wing, Letty and Neela were both sitting on Letty's bed, reading through teen magazines. They were not really Letty's thing but she needed something to get her through the day. She had considered showing Neela her sharpened bobby pin and getting her opinion on it but she wasn't that convinced that Neela wasn't going to alert someone. Letty wasn't even sure whether Neela self-harmed in the centre, she didn't want to restart any old feelings. She would wait to see if she was still harming and go from there.

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	3. Chapter 3

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

* * *

_Friday 5__th__ September 2014_

Maths was the one subject she disliked the most. While to some extent it was useful, when Pythagoras and Trigonometry were introduced it became a subject that Letty deemed useless. There was never going to be a moment when she needed to work out the length of a side in real life. In her previous school, Letty was a frequent visitor to the Head of Maths for talking back and not doing her homework. Often she would ask when she would need to use it in the future, another act that landed her with an hour detention on Friday's at the end of the day.

So, when maths came around as the first lesson on Friday, Letty was less than pleased.

"I don't see why I have to go to this stupid lesson anyway," Letty ranted to Neela as they made their way from the canteen to the classroom.

"Because we need to learn how much alcohol is in a bottle without reading the label," Neela joked.

"Obviously because I need so much hassle before getting drunk."

"When you put it that way."

Letty and Neela laughed as they entered the classroom. Maths was a lot like English, relaxed, calm, and chilled. Roman Pearce was a young teacher, fresh out of college and understood that the last thing a teenager needed was to be sat, in silence, while listening to a teacher go on and on. Roman had been a lot like that in his schooling days. Luckily, maths came as a natural talent to him – not that he showed it much. He spent his high school days sleeping in the back of the classroom or throwing rolled up balls of paper across the room to his friends. It surprised everyone when he passed maths, especially when he got the grade he did.

"Alright guys, I know you had a different teacher last year but now you've got me so deal with it," Roman said in such a way that elicited laughs from the class. "I'm Roman Pearce but Rome will do just nicely. And none of that sir rubbish, I can't be dealing with that. Now I know you're not going to like this but we're starting with a test."

"Seriously?" Someone called out from the back. "First maths lesson back and you're giving us a test?"

"Yep. I just need to see what you can do and what I need to go through with you in more detail. Obviously, we'll be going over everything but this will just give me a general idea about your maths skills."

Everyone had just found a seat and sat down, no seating plan or input from Roman. When they walked in, he decided to let them get on with it, knowing that he could move them later if he needed to. As he handed the tests out, the few small glares he was given did not surprise him, he used to give them himself. When the last test was given, he set the alarm for fifty minutes and told them to start. Pulling out a pile of paperwork from the bottom of his desk, Roman took advantage of the silence and started to fill out the files.

"Okay, times up," Roman said fifty minutes later. "Papers to the end of the your desks and then you can leave when the bell goes."

Letty and Neela left the classroom and followed the crowd until they reached the food room. Inside Mia Toretto was wearing a light pink apron, detailed with roses while she set up the ingredients on her bench. The class filtered into the classroom and grabbed an apron each, every girl tying her hair up and coming to stand in a semi circle in front of Mia's bench. Mia was not their usual teacher but while she was off from college, Sofia had asked her to cover for the normal teacher, Suki. She had brought along a Spaghetti Bolognese recipe to share with the class.

"Okay people. As you may have already seen, Suki's not here today so I'm taking your class."

"What do we call you?" Somebody from the back shouted out.

"Mia will do fine, thank you. Onto the lesson, today, we'll be making Spaghetti Bolognese. I'll be doing everything a little different to Suki in a way that makes you more independent but if you have any troubles, I'm here. On your stations you'll find a recipe and you have a set of ingredients between four of you. Go."

The room was fairly simple. It was a classic square shape and the work benches were set into groups of four. An oven was given to every pair and there was a Spaghetti Bolognese recipe between two people. Neela led Letty to the back right corner of the room and stood by the bench next to her. Grabbing the recipe, Neela scanned over it before reaching into her cupboard and bringing out all the necessary equipment.

Food technology was a massive test for the West C as opposed to the sections of the centre. The constant use of knives throughout cooking and the danger of somebody purposely burning themselves for pain could be a major problem for the staff and reputation for the centre. Letty took a board and a knife from her cupboard and began to dice four rashers of bacon after putting a saucepan on medium heat. While it heated, she added olive oil and threw in the bacon. As the bacon cooked, she quickly finely diced two medium onions, two carrots and two cloves of garlic.

"Neela, I'm being serious. I'm about to cry," Letty said, looking over to see her friend sucking a teaspoon.

"Suck a teaspoon," Neela said as she pointed to her mouth. "It always works for me."

"Bit too late now."

Mia walked around to Neela and Letty as both of them added rosemary to their saucepans. Due to the C wards not being full, no one had joined the over sides of Letty and Neela's benches so it just the two of them. The vegetables were then to be fried for around eight to ten minutes until it had softened. Mia found this the perfect moment to approach the girls about the week so far.

"Okay girls, how are we feeling today?"

"I'm good thanks," Neela said.

"And you, Letty?"

"Alright I guess."

"You haven't been here long have you?" Mia inquired. Of course she knew the answer but she wanted to learn Letty for who she was rather than judging her through other people's opinions.

"No, got here about three days ago," Letty said, stirring her veg around the saucepan.

"Enjoying it?"

"Not really."

"Ah." Mia didn't find the answer very surprising. She had taken some classes before and had always received the same reaction from the newbies. They were normally angry that they had been placed into a centre, something that was not uncommon in denial. As Mia moved away from Letty and Neela, Sofia arrived in the doorway and signalled for Mia to join her. Keeping a watchful eye over the pupils, Mia turned to talk to her mother.

"Hi."

"Hi, how's it going?

"It's going good. Everyone seems to be quite nice."

"And Letty? How's she getting on?"

"Fine. She seems to be getting on really well with Neela."

"I thought she would," Sofia said. "Anyway, I'll leave you to get on with it."

"Okay."

* * *

_Saturday 6__th__ September 2014_

It was half past seven and Letty was not expecting the wakeup call that she got. Just seconds earlier, a receptionist had banged lightly on her door and when Letty answered it, she thrust inside a wireless telephone and closed the door behind her before walking away back to reception. Pushing her hair back out of her face, Letty spoke into the mouthpiece.

"Hello?"

"Letty, it's me. Mum."

"Hi Mum," Letty said, secretly lucky that Lena was not there to see her roll her eyes.

"How's it going? What's it been now, three days?" Lena asked, bombarding Letty with questions.

"Yeah. I made a few friends," Letty offered.

"Oh yeah? Who?"

"A few girls called Neela and Poppy but not many others just yet."

"So no one called Amelia then?" Lena asked. She had not been happy when she had received a phone call from Sofia about Letty's recent behaviour.

_Lena walked from the kitchen and through her cluttered living room to answer the phone. In the last two days, three delivery vans had brought the entire contents of her old house. Lena had started with the bedrooms, hiring a cheap painter and decorator to put up her pre chosen wallpaper before a carpet layer arrived to put down a soft, fluffy carpet so Lena could start moving her bedroom furniture upstairs and into place. Luckily, her decorator's came before the delivery vans. As part of the contract, the men had moved everything considered 'heavy' by the company and put it wherever Lena asked. Now all that was needed was a visible living room floor._

_Jumping over a box, Lena reached forward and grabbed the telephone from its stand and silenced its ringing._

"_Hello?"_

"_Hello, can I speak to Lena Ortiz please?"_

"_Speaking."_

"_This is Marcia from the Elizabeth Rose Centre. I am calling to tell you about an incident that your daughter, Letty was involved in recently," Marcia said as Lena sighed. Trust Letty of all people to get stuck straight into the drama. _

"_What sort of incident is this?" Lena asked._

"_She was involved in a verbal fight with another patient of ours," Marcia explained._

"_How bad was it?" Lena asked._

"_Letty's involvement was less than the other girl's."_

"_Who did she have her 'verbal fight' with?"_

"_I can't really answer that question but her first name is Amelia. I can't really give you anymore than that I'm afraid."_

"_That's fine, thank you."_

"_Just to let you know that Letty has received a formal warning because of this. You should get a letter through the post."_

"_Okay, you do have my LA address don't you?"_

"_I think so," Marcia said before using the computer to scan through Letty's contact details and find Lena's address. "Yes, we have your LA address."_

"_Okay, was that all?"_

"_Yep, enjoy the rest of your day."_

"_Thank you, bye."_

"_Bye."_

Mum, don't start," Letty whined into the phone.

"I take that as a no then. Is there any reason that two days into your stay you're getting into fights?"

"She started it, not me."

"That wasn't the question," Lena said fiercely. Just because she was a few miles away and was speaking through the phone, it did not mean she lost any of her fierceness.

"She was walking around thinking that she was the best. Someone had to put her in her place."

"But that person didn't have to be you," Lena stressed. "Just try and get through these months without getting into more trouble. _Please._

"Alright, whatever."

"I'll see if I can speak to you or come and see you soon. I love you."

"Yeah, I love you too," Letty said.

"Bye."

"Bye."

Letty hung up the phone and flung it down onto a pile of dirty clothes. The centre had a laundrette based in the North Wing but until yesterday, Letty did not have enough to make up a full load. Crawling back into bed, Letty took a quick look at the time and groaned. She had been on the phone to Lena for the last half an hour and now only had sixty minutes until her second therapy session with Gisele. She had done her homework on Thursday night, one bad memory and one happy memory from her childhood. Her bad memory had given her trouble, she had so many she could not choose one.

In the end she had decided a moment from almost fourteen years ago. It was her first memory. Her happy memory was more recent, taking place only five years ago when Lena took her to Disneyworld Orlando. Another knock in the door disrupted Letty and she stormed out of bed angrily. Swinging the door open, she was met face to face with Neela, sporting a smile that was far too big for eight o' clock in the morning.

"What do you want? It is too early."

"I was just wondering whether you're up for grabbing breakfast today. By the look of you, I'm going to say no."

"Just give me ten minutes to jump in the shower and I'll be ready."

"Okay, I'll wait in my room."

Letty shut the door and walked straight to the bathroom. Stripping off, she quickly jumped in the shower. She had planned on getting some sleep and skipping breakfast but Lena's phone call and Neela's appearance had ruined her plans. But not one to complain, Letty dried off, whipped her hair into a ponytail and pulled on some clothes. Grabbing her sheet of homework from Gisele, Letty folded it up and tucked into her back pocket before grabbing the phone and heading to Neela's room next door. Before she could even knock Neela had opened the door.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, but I need to go to reception first and give them back their phone. My mum rang this morning," Letty said as they started walking out of the West Wing.

"What did she say?"

"Nothing much, just moaned at me about the whole Amelia Sanchez incident."

"That's harsh," Neela said. "You didn't even start it."

"That's what I told her but she wasn't having it."

Letty and Neela fell into a comfortable silence as they headed towards reception. After they handed over the phone to a disgruntled receptionist, they headed towards breakfast. Letty and Neela joined the line and grabbed their lunch before finding a pair of seats in the almost empty canteen. Only a few South C filled the room along with a couple of teachers who had come in early. A giant clock on the back wall told Letty that she had fifteen minutes until her session with Gisele.

"I'm going to head off now," Letty said as she stood up from the table.

"Alright, I might see you after your session?" Neela questioned.

"Yeah, maybe."

Letty walked out of the canteen and crossed over in the direction of Gisele's office. Arriving five minutes early, Letty took a seat outside the door and pulled her homework form her back pocket. Opening it up, Letty took a quick scan over it before Gisele's heels clicking along the floor distracted her. With folders in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other, Gisele gave Letty her office keys and welcomed her in, dumping the folders down on the desk before gesturing Letty to take a seat.

"Well, I see today is a start contrast to Saturday," Gisele said, noting Letty's early appearance.

"Yeah, my mum called this morning and then I went to breakfast with Neela."

"So you've become friends with her?"

"Yeah," Letty said.

"I'm glad. She's a good influence on people. She studies hard," Gisele commented before moving the focus of the conversation onto their session. "So on Saturday I set you homework. Have you done it?"

"I did," Letty passed over her homework for Gisele to read.

As she finished reading, Gisele looked up at Letty. "What memory do you want to talk about first?"

"We'll go for the bad memory then hopefully the good memory won't make me depressed."

"Whenever you're ready."

* * *

By the time ten o' clock had come around and Letty's session was over, she was leaving Gisele's office in tears. It had been tougher than she had ever imagined. When she first did her memory homework for Gisele, she had never dreamed that she would need to explain them. Throughout the course of the session they had only been able to go over the bad memory – Letty's emotions causing the retelling to be paused several times. In the end, Gisele had explained to Letty that she had no choice but to stop the session and carry it on during Wednesday's session.

"_What memory do you want to talk about first?"_

"_We'll go for the bad memory then hopefully the good memory won't make me depressed."_

"_Whenever you're ready."_

"_Can you not start it off for me?" Letty said, she had absolutely no idea where to start._

"_How old are you in this memory?" Gisele asked. _

"_I was three."_

"_And who's in it?"_

"_Me, my mum and my dad."_

_Gisele quickly took some notes and placed her pen in the middle of her page. "What happened?"_

"_My mum had taken me to the park, she did every Thursday. My dad, as per usual, had been drinking. I was so young that I didn't even realise when he was in a mood most of the time but as soon as we got home I knew. My mum knew as well. I remember she made me quickly go upstairs but I waited at the top and hid behind the wall so I could watch," Letty said. She sniffed, wiping her nose with her sleeve and giving a small cough into her hand. "I knew I shouldn't have watched."_

"_What happened next?" Gisele asked._

"_He hit her. My dad hit my mum and I was there at the top of the stairs watching every single minute of it." _

"_It must have been horrible."_

"_It was. My first proper memory was my dad hitting my mum. And the worst thing is, my memories don't get much better after that."_

"_We can go on to discuss them another time but let's stick to one at a time. Does that sound good?"_

"_Yeah."_

"_So concerning our current memory, how did it make you feel?"_

"_I don't know. I had always seen my dad as some sort of hero, not a villain."_

"_Okay," Gisele said as she jotted some notes down. "If you were to put yourself now in that position again, how would you feel?"_

"_I guess I would feel betrayed. Like everything I ever believed in had been a complete lie. Like a kid would feel when they found out that Santa and the Tooth Fairy didn't exist."_

"_Do you think that this could have been a contributing factor to the start of your self-harming?"_

"_I've never really thought about it," Letty said before pausing. "I don't think so though."_

"_I think so, I think that years of watching your mum going through what she did and what your dad did to her made you strong to physical violence but weak to words. I think high school was a breaking point to you."_

_A tear slid down Letty's face and she quickly wiped it away. Gisele jotted down some more notes before glancing at the time and finding that they were nearing the end of their session. Gathering her notes together, Gisele slid them back into Letty's folder and filed it. As the bell went, Letty stood up from her chair, and said goodbye to Gisele before leaving the office. _

Letty was back in her room before she even had time to breath and she was soon sliding down her door, tears still sliding down her face, only now at a rapid pace. When she shut her eyes, all she could see was her mum and dad. Only now she was bigger, more grown up and had a lot more strength. Like her first memory, she was sitting at the top of the stairs but as she stood up and went to help, her dad struck Lena on the head with a bronze statue they owned.

"Ahh," Letty sighed as a sharpened bobby pin tore through the skin on her wrist. The slice brought her pleasure and still gave her the kind of high you would expect from a class A drug. The blood was freely dripping onto the floor and she staggered towards the bathroom, still digging the pin into her flesh. It was the first time she had ever cut in an obvious place. Letty normally kept it around her thighs and stomach. It was easier to conceal there. But considering everybody knew she was a self-harmer now there was no point in hiding it.

"Letty? Letty?" Neela called through the door. An hour had passed since Letty had arrived back and Neela had had her session with Gisele. "Letty, I know you're in there."

"Go away, Neela," Letty shouted from inside the bathroom. Her wrist resembled something that had been torn apart and half eaten by a bear and the floor could be mistaken for a red pool.

"What are you doing? If you're doing what I think you're doing-" Neela started before she pushed open Letty's door and going through to the bathroom. "Oh, Letty. What on earth were you thinking of?"

Neela rushed towards Letty as the brunette dropped the bobby pin to the floor and slouched against the wall. Neela grabbed her underneath the arms and hoisted her onto the toilet seat. Rummaging through the cupboards, Neela pulled out a first aid kit and started to dress Letty's wounds. Starting with a cloth, Neela wiped the blood away to find that the cuts were not as drastic as the amount of blood made out. She then cleaned it and wrapped it before giving Letty a lecture that was worth a round of applause from Sofia.

"What on earth were you thinking? Did it not cross your mind that you're in here to stop this," Neela said as she motioned towards Letty's wrist. "Not carry on. I get that you haven't been here long but you seem to be the type of person to take on a challenge. Prove them all wrong, prove you can stop cutting."

"What do you know? I bet you're still harming even now. No therapists or anything can people like us," Letty said, raising her voice. "It's all in our heads."

"You know what, you can fight your own battles from now on then. And for your information, the last time I cut was two months, three weeks and four days ago."

* * *

_Sunday 7__th__ September 2014_

When Letty walked into the group therapy session the next day, she could feel the tension radiating off Neela's body. The pair had not talked since their altercation yesterday. Letty's wrist was scabbing over slowly and she had changed her own bandages last night but even she would admit it would have been nice if Neela could have been there to help her. Letty had skipped lunch and dinner in favour of a long nap and for the fact that she would not need to see Neela unless she came banging on her door, something Letty highly doubted would happen.

"Okay, people," Gisele started once Letty had taken her seat. "I am aware that you have all been introduced to our newest member but if she would like to introduce herself," Gisele said looking over at Letty.

"I'm Letty."

"Hi Letty," the group said. Letty gave out a silent sigh. It was beginning to feel like something out of a movie where the group applauded and congratulated someone after everything they said.

"Is there anything more that you can tell us?" Gisele asked.

"I'm from New York and me and my mum moved to LA five days ago."

"And when did you start self-harming?"

A look of shock overcame Letty's face as she stared at Gisele. From her view, this was the sort of stuff that she would talk directly to Gisele about, not to a group of people who she met barely a week ago. The room fell into an awkward silence as Gisele stood there waiting for Letty to give some sort of reply. Luckily, a knock on the door drew the group's attention away from Letty.

"Sorry I'm late," Sofia said as she walked over to the corner of the room and sat down. The awkward silence was broken and the group started to chat in small groups.

Gisele gave her a forgiving smile before collecting the attention of the group. "Sofia will be sitting in our session today but just pretend she's not there. Anyone want to start us off?"

"I will," Neela said. "Today, I have not self-harmed for two months, three weeks and five days."

The group gave a round of applause while Neela wore a proud smile. It had taken her a while to get to where she was and she would never turn down an opportunity like it again. Yesterday had been a blast from the past, she had gone down exactly the same route as Letty had and after sleeping on it, she realised that she was wrong to snap at Letty like that and she would need to apologise.

"Now, I want you to share with the group how long it has been since you self-harmed."

"Two months."

"One week and five days."

"Three months and four days."

"Fifty-six days."

"Letty? How long since you self-harmed?"

"I haven't really been keeping count."

"Okay, that's fine. But from now on, try and keep a rough estimation because it will help you as you carry on through this process."

"Okay."

"Does anyone have any advice to give to Letty about life here?"

Neela looked over in Letty's direction as Letty diverted her eyes to the other side of the room. Letty was still not sure about how to act around Neela. They had not talked about yesterday and she did not know whether the disagreement had carried on or if it had been slept off overnight. Neela tried to catch Letty's eye to offer a slight smile but Letty kept looking in the other direction.

"I have some advice," Neela said. She looked over to Letty and made sure that Letty was looking directly at her before continuing. "Don't lie to yourself. Be truthful or you'll get nowhere."

"Thank you Neela. Anything to say, Letty?"

"I'll try and do that from now on, thanks."

The session carried on without much drama, each party adding their little snippet until the bell went for the start of the second group therapy session. There were three in total. The first session was a general talk, any achievements or special dates they had had over the week. The second session was about trusting someone else, putting your faith into a different partner every time until you could trust everyone in the ward. The third and final session was all about self-control.

"I want everyone to pick and partner and stand next to them," Gisele said.

Neela went over to Letty and stood next to her, whispering to her quietly. "Can I go with you?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I was out of order. It's been so long since I've been that person and I guess I forgot how I came to be at the centre in the first place. And for that I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too, for saying about your own self-harm. I was out of order."

"No worries, friends?"

"Definitely."

As the group separated into three separate pairs, Sofia headed over to Gisele, who was arranging some notes for the session.

"I'm worried about Letty," Sofia said.

"Why?"

"Just something Neela said. I know I'm not a therapist so I could be making the whole situation up but I think Letty knows when she last self-harmed and I think it's been since she's been here."

"What gives you that impression?" Gisele queried.

"Neela told Letty not to lie to herself and Letty just had this look on her face. I can't describe it but it was just one of them looks."

"Is that all you're basing it on?" Gisele defended. She knew yesterday's session had been quite intense but for it to lead to self-harm? It seemed like everything she tried to avoid she had ended up insinuating.

"No. She's wearing long sleeves." Gisele gave Sofia a funny look. "I know that sounds strange but it's boiling, I mean come on."

"I'll look into it, thanks for mentioning it."

"No worries," Sofia said as she backed out of the door.

Gisele walked closer to the class and gathered them round in a circle. "I think for now we'll just start with basic trust exercise. Fall back into your partner's arms. You've got five minutes. Go."

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	4. Chapter 4

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

Thank you so much for all your lovely reviews! :)

* * *

_Monday 8t__h__ September 2014_

"Right, come on everyone. Quiet," Sofia shouted over the commotion. The C warders were gathered in the cinema foyer, all waiting in their separate friendship groups as they waited for Sofia, Elena and Roman to purchase their tickets. Every Monday, the C warders were given a day out into the local town and a trip to the cinema. It gave them a chance to experience the 'outside world' and purchase some personal items. Instead of physically being given money, the centre owned debit cards, each with a monthly allowance with parents being given the opportunity to add a maximum amount to the total.

"West C gather towards me, South C head over to Elena and East C to Roman," Sofia said once the group was quiet. "Anything you want to purchase or if you need to visit the toilet, go now. You won't be able to go during the film."

Sofia gave Elena and Roman enough tickets for their groups before ushering West C away from the crowd. Sofia handed out the tickets and asked if the group wanted to buy anything from the cinema. As the group shook their heads, Sofia looked over to Elena and Rome to see if they were ready to go in. After receiving two nods, Sofia led West C over to the ticket lady and instructed them to hand over their tickets so she could rip them in half before leading them towards Screen 4.

"Remember you have allocated seating," Elena's voice wafted over the group. "And I don't want to hear any complaints about you either," she warned.

"Elena's right," Sofia said. "If I hear a single whisper of someone kicking chairs or disturbing the public in any way, shape or form, all of you will be staying in and none of you will get the chance to go out next week. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

"Yes."

"Good."

Letty followed Neela up the stairs after discovering they were sitting next to each other. As she had made many visits to the cinema with the centre in the past, Neela quickly found her and Letty's seats and sat down, bringing out her drink and placing it in the cup holder.

"I didn't even want to see this," Neela whispered as the cinema went black and the trailers started to roll.

"I did."

"Of course you would. Me, on the other hand-"

"-wanted to see the fine work of art that was Alex Pettyfer. Yes, I know. You told me about thirty thousand times on the way here."

"Alright, spoilsport."

"Shut up."

As the end credits rolled, Neela and Letty left the cinema and met up with the others in the cinema foyer. After the film, they had arranged to go shopping in small groups. Sofia had recently held a meeting with the therapists and came to the conclusion that they should learn to support each other in the real world. With everyone armed with their cards, they split up in separate ways with a time to meet back up again.

"Is there anything in particular you want?" Neela asked Letty as they headed down the main street.

"Some nice food. The food in the canteen is great and all but I just need crisps and chocolate after a session with Gisele to really make me feel better. It's just a need of mine."

"I know what you mean, I only lasted a session before buying my first packet of Doritos."

Letty and Neela both laughed as they entered a small convenience store. Picking up a basket each, they both headed towards the crisp section, careful on what they chose as Neela told Letty that what they brought would be seen on the centre's money system and would eventually be seen by Sofia and then Tony. Finally deciding on a tube of Pringles and a bag of Ready Salted, Neela and Letty headed over to the chocolate.

"Can I just buy the whole counter?" Letty asked as she skimmed her fingers over the wrappers.

"As much as I would like to think so and no matter how much I would like to make that purchase with you, I don't think you can."

The pair were interrupted by a loud crash and a high pitched scream. Neela shrugged her shoulders and went back to looking at the chocolate as Letty put her basket on the ground and headed towards the door. Walking onto the street, she saw a young woman on the ground, clutching her stomach as a well-built man dropped a knife to the pavement before two nearby police officers tackled him to the ground. As the public reacted, Letty found herself walking closer before looking directly at the woman and running off, leaving Neela alone in the shop.

Only when the sound of an ambulance came past the shop did Neela head towards the doors to investigate. Putting her basket down near the entrance, Neela weaved throughout the small gathering crowd to find Letty. The last time she had seen her was when she left to see what the commotion was. Seeing that Letty was nowhere to be found, Neela pulled out her phone and dialled her number. As it went to voicemail, she tried seven more times before giving up and calling Roman. She figured that the maths teacher would be more relaxed and be less harsh on Neela for losing Letty.

"Hello?" Roman answered.

"Hi it's Neela. I have a small problem."

"What's that?"

"I may or may not have lost Letty," Neela said nervously.

"When you say lost her, what do you mean?"

"Basically, we were doing some shopping and there was a noise outside and Letty went to see what it was and when I went out to have a look and find her, she was nowhere to be seen. I've tried calling her as well and she's not answering."

"I would agree, you do have a problem. Where are you?"

"David's convenience store."

"I'll let Sofia and Elena know and we'll be right with you. Don't move, keep trying her cell."

"Okay."

Fifteen minutes later, Sofia, Roman and Elena arrived at the convenience store. In that time, Neela had rung Letty's phone a further twenty-four times.

"No sign of her?" Sofia asked as she approached Neela.

"No, I asked some people around and one man said that he saw someone that looked like her heading off back towards the cinema."

"Okay, let's get some people out looking. I'll call Tony and see if I can get hold of Dom."

* * *

Three hours had passed and they were no closer to finding Letty than they had been before. Sofia and Elena had stayed out looking while Roman took Neela and the rest of the C warders back to the centre. While Elena consulted with the leading officer on the search for Letty, Sofia rung Lena and asked if there was anywhere in particular Letty would go. The call was pointless, Letty was in a brand new city with nowhere that held memories or any special places that she had discovered along the way. The quicker night fell, the harder Letty was becoming to find.

"The officer said that unfortunately they can't do anything until she has been missing for twenty-four hours. It's policy," Elena said as she headed towards Sofia.

"I get it. I'm going to try and reach Dom again and see if he can help. He should be on the other side of town so while Tony looks this side, Dom can look the other side and hopefully one of them will find her."

"Okay."

"Hey Dom, it's mum. Are you busy? I need a favour. One of our girls has gone missing. She's in West Wing and was out when she ran off, we think it might have something to do with the stabbing that happened. Is it aright if you can drive around and have a look? She has long brown hair, olive skin, wearing jeans and a top. Thanks."

As Sofia hung up, Tony came up behind her and greeted her with a quick kiss to the cheek. After a basic outline of the events, what Letty was wearing and a small reminder that if he found her to be careful on what he said, Tony left and sped off in his car.

On the other side of town, Dom left the gym and headed towards his car, waving quick goodbye to some of his training buddies before sliding in and buckling up. Itching his chin, Dom thought of the most logical places to look first; the mall, the market square and the park. Sending Sofia a quick text asking for a picture of Letty for him to show around, Dom pulled out of the car park and headed towards the mall. If it was Mia that had run off somewhere, he would definitely check the mall first. Besides, he didn't know anything about her so the mall was his best bet.

"Excuse me, have you seen this girl?" Dom asked as he showed Letty's picture to a random stranger.

"No, sorry, mate."

"No worries, excuse me," Dom said to young woman. "Have you seen this girl?"

"No, I'm sorry."

Dom rushed back to his car as he realised that Letty must not be like Mia or any other girl after all. Thinking back to his list, he drove to the market square, empty as the daily trade was packed away. Seeing that it was empty, Dom drove straight past and went to the nearest park where he saw a young girl, with long brown hair wearing jeans and a top. Throwing his car into reverse and parking in the only spot available, Dom texted Sofia and told her he found Letty before flicking the silent button and heading over. Sitting down the next swing, Dom sat silently as he waited for Letty to say something.

"I don't know who you are and I don't care who you are but if you keep sitting there and staring at me I will eventually get pissed off."

Dom laughed. "I know your name is Letty and that pretty much everyone is out looking for you."

"Makes a change."

"You don't seem like the kind of girl who constantly needs attention."

"I don't. And before you ask, I didn't run off for attention, I ran off because it was the most natural thing to do. I didn't even think about it. One minute I was outside the convenience store and the next I'm here."

"I'm Dom, by the way. Also known as Sofia and Tony's son and Mia's sister."

"I see the resemblance."

"While right now, I would love to chat and discuss the family tree, I think it's probably time I took you back to the centre. It's getting late and I don't need my mum moaning at me again."

Dom got up from the swing and stood in front of Letty, holding his hands out. Letty raised her eyebrows and ignored his hands in favour of getting up herself. Tutting quietly to himself, Dom led the way towards his car, leaving Letty to open her own door as he slid in the driver's side. After making sure she was comfortable and buckled up, Dom started the fifty minute journey back to the centre. Lowering the volume on the radio, Dom started to make small talk with Letty.

"So, Letty. Short for anything?"Dom asked.

Letty sighed. "Yes."

"Are you going to tell me what it's short for?"

"No."

"Come on, don't be like that. I promise not to tell anyone."

"Leticia."

Dom held back a laugh. "That's not too bad."

"It's absolutely terrible. I have no idea what my mum was thinking."

"I like it," Letty gave Dom a look. "Seriously, I do."

"I'm glad someone does."

The rest of the journey was filled with mindless chatter and the occasional laughs. It was nice for Letty to just talk to someone who did not have an opinion, a degree in psychology or past experiences with self-harm. For Dom, Letty was a breath of fresh air, the first person he had talked to in the last week that had not made a single mention about his future and the amount of work he was putting in at university.

As the centre came into view, Dom turned to look at Letty. "Ready to go back?"

"Not really but I don't really have a choice. No doubt they've already called my mum and who knows what's going to happen with her."

"I'm sure she won't be angry at you," Dom comforted.

"You clearly haven't met my mum."

"What makes her so bad?"

"Okay, now you're starting to sound like Gisele," Letty said as the car slowed to a stop. "Thanks for the ride. Laters."

"Hold up, I'll walk you in."

"I don't need a babysitter."

"Never said you did," Dom said, taking big strides to keep up with Letty's quick pace. "I'm just making sure you get in safely so my mum doesn't kill me."

"Whatever."

Letty pushed open the doors to the centre reception and was met with a crushing hug from Lena. Leaning back from her daughter, Lena stroked Letty's face tenderly before pulling her back into a bone crushing embrace. Dom dodged the mother-daughter interaction and walked over to Sofia. She gave him a small hug, a massive contrast to Lena's reaction. Then again, Sofia had known where Dom was the entire time. Giving Dom a brief smile and a quick rub on the arm, Sofia stepped towards Lena and Letty.

"I'm really sorry but it's getting late and we need Letty back in her room. If you're still a bit worried about her then we can arrange a time when you can talk to her without interrupting her schedule."

"Oh, okay. I guess I'll speak to you when I get a chance," Lena told Letty before grabbing her bag and giving her daughter a final hug.

"See you later, mum."

"See you later."

"Come on then, Letty," Sofia said, leading her towards West C. "You've got a quick assembly tomorrow at ten o'clock. Don't miss it."

"I'll try not to."

"I'm sure you'll try your hardest," Sofia replied with a slight harshness to her voice before softening her tone. "Get some sleep, Letty. You've had a rough day. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

* * *

_Tuesday 9__th__ September 2014_

At ten o' clock sharp the next morning, every single patient of the centre was gathered in the hall waiting for Sofia to arrive. A small chatter was saving the hall from silence, despite three teachers already telling everyone to sit in silence. The sound of clicking heels managed to silence the room and Sofia strode in, tablet in one arm and her handbag hanging from another. Walking in between the two sections of chairs, Sofia headed towards the stage and climbed up the steps, dumping her bag and tablet by the wings before taking centre stage and addressing the room.

"For all the older patients here, you will know that the Elizabeth Rose Centre is approaching its fourth anniversary. To celebrate, we will be having a ball. Now on your days off you will be taken down town and be able to buy dresses and suits. $100 will be added to each of your cards to get what you need, spend it wisely. Girls, I hope I don't need to remind you that this is a ball, not a Halloween party."

"She's right, this is a formal wear occasion," Elena chimed in, receiving a thankful nod for Sofia.

"Not only will this be a celebration for the centre's anniversary, it will also act as an event to help increase sponsorship deals. However, that does mean that some of you will be required to speak to some of the potential sponsors to help attract them to the centre. Because of our duty of care, only those who sign up for it will be spoken to and everyone attending is aware that not everybody is over their demons. C warders, there will be a bus going into town at eleven so if you would like to be on it, let Suki know now and we'll get everything arranged."

Sofia closed the assembly with a short nod and walked back to the side of the stage, grabbing her bags and walking down the side of the hall. As per usual, everybody was let out row by row, except for the C warders, who were given the instruction to meet at the front of the hall if they wished to get the bus into town. Neela and Letty waited until their row was dismissed before making their way down to the front. As Mia had taken Letty's first food technology lesson, Letty had never met Suki but she seemed nice enough.

"Right everyone, get your names down on this piece of paper if you're looking to go. If you are not at reception at five to eleven and ready to leave at eleven on the dot, we will be going without you so make sure that you have nothing else you need to do before putting your name down. Thank you."

"So basically, we have thirty minutes to grab our stuff before we need to be at reception," Letty said to Neela as she scribbled both of their names down.

"Yeah, and trust me, when they say that they will leave without you, they will. It took me three separate occasions to learn that even if I was a minute late they were already gone. If we've got time, it would probably be best to get there at ten to anyway."

Back in her office, Sofia sat down at her desk and slipped her shoes off. Clicking her toes, she used the desk to pull herself and her chair closer to her tablet before sliding on her glasses and logging on. As she made herself comfortable, a soft knock on her door made her sigh as she called 'come in'. Tony poked his head round the door and Sofia found herself smiling at just the sight of her husband. He entered the room properly and took a seat opposite her, pushing her tablet slightly to the side so he could look directly at his wife.

"How is our runaway patient?" Tony asked, referring to Letty's antics the previous night.

"I'm not too sure. She seems to be doing well but then again, teenagers are very good at hiding their true emotions."

"Did she go to your assembly?"

"Yeah," Sofia replied. "She sat with Neela so hopefully she will help Letty with it all. She's got her usual slot with Gisele tomorrow morning so I'm going to get them to go through it so I know what the problem was. If it's going to affect her every time she goes into the town, we might need to rethink taking her."

"I think we should just give Gisele a bit of time before we go full steam ahead. You know Gisele, she's amazing at her job."

"That she is."

Tony and Sofia shared a small laugh as Suki knocked on the door and entered at Sofia's request.

"Yes?" Sofia enquired.

"Letty's put herself down to go into town later. I don't know whether you have some sort of objection to that or whether you're happy to let her get on with it."

"Is Neela down to go as well?"

"Yeah."

"I don't see why not then. Before you go off though, just pull Neela to one side and ask her to keep an eye on Letty. I don't doubt that she wouldn't in the first place but just to be sure."

"Will do, thanks, Sofia. I'll see you both later."

"Bye."

"Bye," Tony said. "Have you spoken to Dom about last night?" He asked Sofia.

"Not really, I haven't really had a chance."

"I'll see if I can catch him one morning before he heads off to uni."

"Yeah, sounds good. I might try and come home early tonight anyway. This ball is starting to get on top of me. For God's sake I managed to organise the whole design of our house and I can't even organise a ball."

"Designing our house was very simple for you, darling. You just told them where to put everything and that was it. With the ball, you need seating plans, table decorations, music, food, drink and everything on top of that. Don't stress about it."

"Thanks, hun. I knew you'd made me feel better."

* * *

At ten to eleven, Letty and Neela walked into reception and took a seat on one of the sofas. They were the first ones there apart from Suki, who was already waiting by the reception talking to Marcia, the same receptionist who had called Lena last week to inform her of Letty's altercation with Amelia. Suki noticed the two girls and waved them over.

"You alright, girls?" Nice and early that's what I like to see. Marcia, can you get the cards for Leticia Ortiz and Neela Melendez out please," Suki asked.

"Of course," Marcia replied before getting up and heading towards a safety box that had been concealed inside a cupboard on the back wall. Quickly punching in the security code, Marcia scanned through the alphabetically organised system to find 'M' and 'O'. "Here you go," she said handing them over.

"Keep them safe, girls. Marcia, can you get these ones out as well please before you lock it all up," Suki asked, handing over the list of patients.

"Just give me a minute."

As Marcia turned her back, a flurry of people filtered into reception and gathered around Suki for their cards. As they waited, Suki informed them that they had to wait for Brian, the trainee careers teacher, to join them. He would take the few boys that had signed up to a shop specialising in suits for special occasions and Suki would be taking the girls to a gorgeous boutique in the middle of town which she had used personally in the past for similar occasions. At the mention of his name, Brian came around the corner, dressed in casual jeans and a top with his bag slung over his shoulder.

"Alright, guys. Are we ready to go? Lads, I need a new suit of my own."

"Trying to impress Mia again, are we?" One of the boys replied.

It was common knowledge around the school already that Brian had a thing for Mia. Ever since he had met her on his induction day, he had been mesmerised and now everybody, including Mia, knew.

"You know me, always out to please."

"Let's try and get you a proper suit then, eh?"

"Yes, please."

"Alright, Suki, there you go. Everybody's should be there."

Suki handed out the cards and led everybody out to the bus waiting for them. It was a quick scramble for some people to get their preferred seats and for everybody that didn't really care, they sat wherever. The journey seemed short as everyone had their own conversations, resulting in a noisy environment for Suki and Brian. As the pulled up at the boutique, Suki led out the girls, bidding a quick farewell to Brian, letting him know that she would text him when they were almost ready to leave.

"Okay, here goes, girls. Welcome to the best boutique in the world. And because I come here so often, I get a constant ten percent discount."

"I am loving this shop already," Neela said as she followed Suki inside.

Two hours into the trip and Neela was convinced she had found the perfect dress. In the sale for only $150, the floor length, one shoulder, baby blue gown had captured her attention from her moment she saw it. After trying it on, showcasing it to the whole store, Neela had declared it hers and had marched straight up to the till and brought it for $135, using Suki's discount to her advantage. Now, she was trying to find Letty something to wear, a task that was a lot easier said than done.

"What about this one?"

"No."

"This one?"

"No."

"This one, ahh, this would look absolutely brilliant with the nicest pair of nude high heels that I saw over there somewhere."

"I am not wearing high heels, I can assure you of that now. Me and high heels are a complete no-no. Never in a million years."

"What have you got against wearing high heels? Everybody should love high heels."

"I did, when I was five."

"So why not anymore?"

"Because when I was five, I decided to raid my mum's wardrobe and I managed to find the highest pair of heels that she owned. Me being five, loved the fact that they were sparkly and I put them on, shuffled out of her room and ended up going head first down the stairs, breaking my leg in two different places. I couldn't ride my bike for ages. I've hated heels ever since."

"As much as your story is heartbreaking and I really do feel for you, there is no way I am letting you go to this ball not wearing heels/ Understood?"

"I suppose."

"Good," Neela said, clapping her hands together. "Now go search for a dress."

Four hours, twenty-six minutes, two disagreements and three dresses purchased and with Letty's promise that she would go again next Monday, Suki had managed to drag the girls out of the boutique. She was handing the cards back to Marcia when Dom came through the door. Walking up to the reception desk, he signed in before stopping next to Letty and smiling at her.

"How are you feeling today?" He asked.

"I'm feeling better. Thanks for last night, you didn't have to."

"I need someone to call me their knight in shining armour." Dom laughed off Letty's thanks, he was never one to accept thank yous."

"Your car may have been shiny but you were no knight."

Dom clutched his chest. "You have hurt my feelings so much you have broken my heart."

"You weren't this much of a wuss last night," Letty said before breaking into a grin. "Although, if you have heart problems, I can try my very best to help you."

"What do you mean by that?"

"When I was younger I always wanted to be a cardiologist."

"Why can't you be one now?" At this point, they had moved from receptionist and were walking towards Sofia's office and the West Wing.

"After all this," Letty motioned at her wrists. "I can't get the grades I need to study for it so I guess I'll just have to think over my future again some time. Science is alright here but they don't do the course I need."

"I'll have a chat with my mum, I'm sure we can sort something out," Dom offered.

"You don't need to do that, I'll think of something else, I always do."

"Alright then, if you're sure."

"Absolutely."

"Okay, this is me," Dom said as he pointed towards the sign on Sofia's door. "I'll chat to you later?"

"Yeah, maybe."

"Maybe?"

"If you're really, really lucky."

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	5. Chapter 5

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits her will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

* * *

_Wednesday 10__th__ September 2014_

When Letty reached the Gisele's office ready for her session, she was invited straight in and took a seat opposite Gisele.

"How are you feeling today, Letty?" Gisele asked, getting out Letty's notes.

"Not bad."

"Are you excited about the ball?"

"Kind of."

"Only kind of?"

Letty pressed her lips together. "It'll be fun to have a party and everybody will be focussed on the ball and not so focussed on what we're doing."

"But?" Gisele prompted.

"I'm not really one for dressing up. My version of dressing up is a clean pair of jeans and a nice looking top. Dresses and high heels just aren't my thing."

"Are you not going for a dress then?"

"I don't really have a choice. Neela is on a mission to find something for me."

"Was this yesterday?" Gisele asked.

"Yeah." Letty stopped talking and looked at Gisele. "I know you want to ask me about Monday so just go for it. I know the conversation isn't going to go away so we might as well get it over and done with."

"Okay," Gisele said, looking surprised. "Let's start with the basic back story. Start from when you left here."

"Sofia, Roman and Elena took us all on the cinema trip. We got there, got our tickets, watched the film and split up into town. Me and Neela went together into town and went off to get some crisps and chocolate. Little snacks like that."

"Then what happened?"

"I heard a crash and a scream. Me being me, I was curious so I went to see what was happening. I saw that a young woman had been stabbed so I ran off and ended up at the park where Dom found me."

"Why did you run?" Letty stayed silent. Looking around the room, she rose out of her seat and walked around. As Letty looked at the pictures, Gisele took the opportunity to write some notes about Letty. Seeing Gisele writing in the background, Letty turned around.

"What are you writing about me?"

"That you find it difficult when you are faced with watching physical violence."

"Hmm." Letty turned back around.

"Why did you run?" Gisele repeated her previous question.

Letty sat back down. "My mum got stabbed when I was younger."

"How young were you?"

"I think I was about four."

"Who stabbed her?"

"My dad."

Gisele raised her eyebrows slightly before jotting down some more notes. Letty stared at the page but decided not to read them. She was fed up with everybody else's opinion on her. Pushing Letty's notes into a neat pile, Gisele slid them into a folder and placed them to one side. Folding her arms, Gisele leant back.

"Your dad?"

"My dad."

"Why?"

"I have no idea. My mum didn't come and get me from school once so after we'd waited half an hour my friend's mum took me home. We found them arguing with my dad holding a knife. He stabbed her about thirty seconds after I'd walked in the door. The police found out later that they'd been arguing for hours."

"Did he get arrested?"

"No. For some reason my mum decided not to."

"Did you ever find out why?"

"No."

"What do you think made you run?"

"I think the fact that it was a young woman, like my mum, and a strong, fierce looking man, like my dad, got to me. It was like reliving my past and I didn't like it. So I ran."

"Do you think Dom coming to find you was a good thing or a bad thing?"

"It was nice." Letty smiled. "He was someone who I had never met before yet I felt like I trusted him straight away, you know? He had no hidden agenda."

"What do you mean by hidden agenda?"

"With you, your job is to try and make me feel better so I don't cut anymore. My mum wants me to stop and will do pretty much anything to make it happen, Sofia wants a successful patient and Neela and the rest of them have been through it all and know what it's like. Dom, on the other hand, knows nothing. He's a blank canvas and I can be me to him, not this crazed self harmer."

"Okay. I see where you come from. Sometimes having someone that can only understand from you what you put on the table can make you feel a lot better. We've got ten minutes left and we've covered a lot of ground so why don't you take the last couple of minutes off and head back."

"I never thought I'd hear that."

"Well take advantage of it before I change my mind. Go."

"Thanks."

"I'll see you on Saturday," Gisele said.

"See you later."

As Letty walked out of Gisele's office, Dom walked into Sofia's. Greeting his mother with a kiss on the cheek, Dom helped himself to a cup of coffee form the machine before sitting opposite Sofia.

"What can I do for you, Dom?"

"I want to talk to you about Letty."

"Okay, go ahead."

Dom took a gulp of his coffee before thinking about how to present his suggestion. He knew that Letty wouldn't be very happy about him talking to Sofia about it but he wanted her to be the best she could – even if he had only know her for a couple of days.

"I was talking to Letty yesterday about some things."

"If you're going to suggest putting Letty on a science program again the answer is still no."

It seemed she hadn't changed her mind in twenty four hours.

"Come on, mum. If she had something to work towards, she could excel. You just need to put a little bit of trust in her."

"It's not as simple as that Dom. Firstly, we need to fund it, not to mention the backlash we'll get from everybody else considering they're not being put on a specialised course. And do you not remember that she got into a fight two days in?"

"Come on, she deserves a chance to make something of herself."

"She can have a taster course. But only if she gets through three weeks of good behaviour. I mean no fights, no back chatting, co-operation. She gets one chance."

"Thanks. She won't let you down."

"I hope not. How did you get here?"

"I got dropped off, why?"

"I'll give you a lift home if you want. I'm heading back there after lunch to get something.

"I'll come here then."

"See you later then."

* * *

As she headed towards lunch, Letty was interrupted by Sofia. After a brief conversation that ended up with Letty agreeing to visit Sofia's office for a quick ten minute discussion, they headed off. As she walked, Letty made a plan on how to escape back to West C within three minutes if Sofia brought up any of Monday's incidents. She had already dealt with those issues with Gisele that morning, she was doing the same thing all over again.

"Please, take a seat."

"Thanks."

"It has been brought to my attention that you had hoped to become a cardiologist in the future."

"What gave you that impression?"

"Dominic came to see me yesterday. He mentioned that you told him you wanted to become a cardiologist but because of your self harming you didn't think that possible anymore."

"It would make it a lot harder. You don't offer everything I need to get into medical school."

"Well consider this an opportunity. I would like to put you on a taster course. I have a friend that works in the local hospital who is good friends with one of their top cardiologists. Depending on your behaviour, I will ask them to give you a taster course to see if it is something you really want to do. If it is, then I'll see if we can arrange tutoring and changing your syllabus in science and maths."

"What do you mean, depending on my behaviour?" Letty asked. She knew that fighting with Amelia was not something that was going to be easily forgotten but she didn't think it would affect her this much.

"I want no fighting, no back chatting and co-operation, first time. Your cutting will also need to stop."

"Stop completely?"

"Yes. I know that's hard and that it will take some work and in the first week, if you agree to this, I will make some exceptions but I really need you to work for this."

"I'll do it. I want to try."

"I'm glad about that. Your three weeks start from the minute you walk out that door."

"Okay."

"I mean that, Letty. If I hear a whisper of bad behaviour from you, this opportunity will be gone before you can say bye."

"I've got it."

Sofia offered a small smile of dismissal before she turned back to her work. She was expecting Dom soon and she needed to finalise some details for the ball before she got distracted. Now that Letty had agreed to her trial run, she also needed to organise the tester for her.

Outside, Letty headed back to the lunch hall so she could meet Neela and talk about West A's budding new relationship – Dustin and Allison. As she walked away from Sofia's office she was called from behind by Dom. Halting her step and turning around, Letty waited for Dom to catch up to her.

"Hey, Letty. How are you?"

"I'm good. That was nice of you to tell your mum about the whole cardiologist thing," Letty said, making sure that Dom received the message that she was pissed.

"Look, I thought I was doing you a favour. She told me she would organise a taster session for you, this could really help you, Letty."

"Yes, it could. But now, I have to be on my best behaviour for the next three weeks and I don't even know if it will all work out. It might just be a waste of time."

"It could be. But it could be the best thing that has ever happened to you. Think about it, this could be the gateway to your future," Dom stressed, taking hold of Letty's upper arms and making her look at him properly.

"And if it doesn't work out, what then?"

"Then we can pick up pieces and find something else that you want to do."

"I could punch you right now," Letty warned.

"Then do, on Saturday after your session, at the gym."

"You want me to come to the gym with you?"

"I want to make you my case study. I'm studying sport at uni so I can become a personal trainer. I need to find someone to train so I can get experience. All I need to do is see you once a week and record your fitness."

"I'm not really a sports person."

"Just think about it, you can use it as somewhere to get rid of all of your aggression so that you can get through your three weeks and I'll get my case study. It's a win-win situation."

"I'll give you three gym sessions to prove that this will benefit me. If I have to do three weeks, so do you."

"Fair enough. I'll see you on Saturday then. What time does your session finish?"

"Ten."

"I'll meet you at the gym at eleven then. Give you time to get changed and that. It'll probably last two hours, you up for that?"

"Never one to back down from a challenge."

"Alright then."

Letty gave Dom a small smirk before heading back towards the canteen. There was the usual hustle and bustle about but it didn't take long for her to find Neela sitting with Poppy. Waving to them, Letty pointed towards the food and Neela nodded in understanding. Letty picked up a tray from the pile and went to the back of line, deciding in her head what she wanted to eat. After she reached the front of the line and her plate was full, she walked over to Neela and Poppy to find them talking about the centre's hottest new couple.

"I can't believe they got together in the first place," Poppy said.

"I know, they are so unalike, it's ridiculous. Do you know how everyone else found out about them?" Neela asked.

"I've heard about five different versions up to now," Poppy replied.

"Well, I heard from Allison that they were caught in the supply closet by the cleaner," Neela told them. The mouthful Letty had just shovelled in nearly came back out as the three of them laughed.

"You're joking."

"I'm not."

"How embarrassing," Poppy commented.

"Then she told me that she just zipped up Dustin's jeans and walked out. I could never do that."

"Neither. Letty, you know how much you love me..."

"Take the dessert, Poppy. I got it just for you."

"You can't just take it," Neela pointed out.

"It's fine. Do I look like someone that wants to eat watery crumble?"

"Clearly not."

Letty smirked at Neela.

"I think we should all hang out on Saturday," Poppy said.

"I'm up for it," Neela agreed.

"I'm sort of taken for Saturday. Sorry," Letty said.

"By who?"

"Dom."

"Ooh, what's happening here?"

"He's studying to become a personal trainer and he wants to train me for his case study. I think he figures that it will keep me from doing a repeat of Monday," Letty said, avoiding all mention of her three week trial run.

"Maybe he likes you."

"Or maybe Sofia told him to?" Letty suggested.

"Spoil sport."

"Shut up and eat that watery custard. I'm gonna go. Stuff to do."

"See you later."

* * *

_Friday 12__th__ September 2014_

"...Now what you plan to do with your future is entirely up to you. Whether you want to become a teacher, a doctor, part of the emergency services, as long as you work hard, you can be whatever you want to be."

"That was very inspiration, Brian," Mia said from the doorway.

The rest of the class smiled. Anyone that had spent more than five minutes with Brian knew that he had quite the crush on Mia. From complimenting her hair to admiring her dress, even Mia was aware of his crush. The truth was though, even since Brian had been employed at the start of the year, she was finding it harder and harder to conceal her own feelings. She had read on twitter the previous day that when a man had a crush, the whole world knew. But when a woman had a crush, only she knew. This was a brilliant example of it.

"Thank you, Mia. I do try my best." Brian winked at her. "Have I told you that you look absolutely amazing today?"

Mia rolled her eyes. "Yes, about five times already. Can I borrow you for a moment?"

"Of course. Class – keep yourselves entertained," Brian said, giving the class his normal hopeful smile that he always gave when he went to talk to Mia.

"Remember there are children around," Letty called out from the back, setting the class off into fits of laughter.

Brian followed Mia outside the classroom and she led him into an empty one. Smoothing her hair and straightening out her hair, Mia turned to Brian and kissed him. Slightly shocked from Mia's sudden approach, Brian froze until Mia moved her lips slightly and Brian began to kiss her back. Moving closer, he put his hands in her hair, curving his hand against the base of her skull as his snaked his tongue between her lips. As the need for air increased, they slowly came apart, still resting their foreheads together.

"What was that for?" Brian panted.

"I thought it was about time I put you out of your misery."

"So you liked me all along?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Mia said. "But it seems the more I see you and the more I talk to you, the stronger my feelings for you get."

"So basically, what I just said," Brian teased.

"Oh shut up and kiss me again."

Brian moved back in for another kiss, this time taking more control. Slowly moving her until she was backed up against the wall, Brian nipped Mia's bottom lip between his teeth, watching the lust in her eyes as she looked hungry for him. A small cough made them freeze, Brian and Mia slowly peeling their lips away from each others as they turned to face Sofia. She was standing at the doorway, hands on her hips, waiting for the two to finish.

"Do you have anything to say for yourselves?" Sofia asked.

"Your daughter is a really good kisser," Brian blurted out before realising what he had said. Mia buried her head in her hands.

"Well, I'm glad you think so. You have ten minutes until the end of your lesson. I'll give you two a few minutes then Mia I want to speak to you," Sofia said before leaving the room.

"Look, Brian," Mia started.

"If you're going to turn around and say it was all a big mistake then I don't want to hear it."

Mia rushed forward and put her hands on either side of Brian's face. "No, no. I'm not going to say that at all. I just want to keep this between us for a while. You know what kids are like. Let's just try and build a foundation first before we set ourselves out for a hammering, okay?"

"Sounds perfect. Now we better get going."

Mia stayed with Sofia as Brian walked back into his classroom. Receiving hopeful looks from everyone, Brian shook his head, giving a small shrug of his shoulders.

"What did she say?"

"She said nothing interesting at all. Just stuff about the ball. She would not be good person to take on a dinner date."

"Better luck next time, eh?" Neela said.

"Hopefully."

Outside, Sofia led Mia back into the empty classroom. Mia sat down, knowing the lecture that was coming. While she knew that Sofia would eventually approve of Brian and their relationship, she also knew that her infamous lecture would come first.

"I don't know what on earth you were thinking, Mia. If I am to be perfectly honest with you I did not raise you to be like this. Snogging in an abandoned classroom? What went through your mind?"

"We had been dancing around each other for weeks. We both really like each other. It's about time you let go of the past."

"How can I?"

"I managed it, I'm sure you can."

"Are you going to tell Brian?" Sofia asked.

"No, and neither are you. You need to drop this now. We are not bringing it up every time I get a boyfriend. I'll see you later."

Mia turned from Sofia and walked out the room. Sofia combed a hand through her hair and breathed out a sigh. Mia could be difficult at the best of times and was even more so when she put the effort in. As she walked out the empty classroom, the bell went and Letty came out of her career's lesson. Seeing the brunette, Sofia called after her and quickened her pace to a fast walk.

"I hear you're going training with Dom after your session with Gisele on a Saturday?" Sofia asked, pushing past other patients to keep up with Letty.

"Yeah."

"Personally, I think it will be good for you, keep you out of trouble for a while."

"That's what Dom said. He told me that he needed to train someone for his case study at uni. Told me it was a win-win situation."

"It will be, trust me," Sofia assured.

"I need to get back so I can do my homework before dinner. Is there anything you would like to talk to me about?" Letty asked, heading towards the West Wing.

"Nothing at the moment. Have a good night."

* * *

_Saturday 13__th__ September 2014_

Letty walked into the gym with her bag slung over her shoulder and already changed into appropriate clothing. Looking around, she noticed Dom already working on the punch bags as he waited for her to arrive. Giving a loud cough, Letty gained Dom's attention and he threw his last punch at the bag before catching it in his arms as he turned to face Letty.

"You ready for this?"

"You make it sound like I'm about to climb a mountain. Just because I'm not a sports person it doesn't mean I'm a stranger to exercise."

Dom laughed. "Follow me."

Letty followed Dom to another room within the gym. On the floor, a series of mats were laid out. Taking her from one set of mats to another, Dom explained each exercise and the rules. First up was sit ups; Letty had a minute to do as many as possible before Dom recorded it on his tracker sheet. Second was push ups in another minute challenge. After telling her that she was welcome to do girl push ups if need be, Letty dropped to the floor and did a proper push up. Ski seat, plank and standing on one leg were all 'for as long as you can' challenges but skipping, crunches, step ups and squats were more one minutes challenges. Cycling and rowing went on until she reached one thousand metres.

"Down on the mat, I'll hold your feet. Go," Dom said as he set off his timer. Letty started off with twenty-six – a respectable score for someone who had not done a sit up since sixth grade. "Not bad, not bad."

"Oh, shut up. You need me more than I need you – remember that."

"I can easily find someone else if you'd prefer?"

"Just get on with it."

"Alright bossy. Push ups, go."

Letty and Dom continued around the circuit, a casual conversation commencing between every challenge as Dom noted down Letty's times and reps while she stretched out and shook out her muscles. Once they were finished, Letty lowered herself to the floor before reaching over to her bag and pulling out a bottle of water. Panting harshly, she took a long gulp and swallowed, letting the cool liquid run down her throat and give her body some much needed fluids.

"Not as easy as you thought eh?" Dom said as he slid down next to Letty.

"It's not that. I underestimated the amount of work that I needed to do," Letty replied with a slight attitude. She wasn't like it with everyone but Dom was just one of those people that she felt comfortable with straight away.

"You didn't think I'd go easy on you did you?"

"I thought you would recognise the fact that I am not a sports person," Letty explained.

"You keep saying that."

"Maybe because I want you to remember that so next time you don't put me through this again."

"Well," Dom started. "I hate to break it to you _sweetheart_ but I am using this to monitor your progress so you'll have to get used to it."

"Are you being serious?"

"Yes."

"Well if you'd like to live, I suggest you stop calling me _sweetheart_."

"Someone has their sassy pants on today."

"Are we finished here?" Letty asked as she got up. Shaking her legs, she threw her half empty bottle into her bag and zipped it up, slinging it over her shoulder.

"Not quite. We have boxing to do." Seeing Letty's face, Dom smiled. "Don't worry, this is just for fun. A cool down if you like."

"Come on then."

"I knew I'd win you round."

"You haven't just yet. You've still got two more weeks to convince me."

Dom jumped up and went to a nearby cupboard to grab two boxing gloves and pads. Handing the gloves over to Letty, he slid the pads over his own hands and headed towards the ring, bending between the ropes and settling in the centre. Once Letty joined him, they proceeded with a series of combinations. As Letty went for a powerful punch, she lost her footing, almost falling ungraciously to the floor before Dom caught her in his arms.

As he held her in his arms, Letty looked up at Dom, examining his face as she felt his breath slowly brush over her face. Tilting her head upwards, Dom met her half way, almost joining their lips together until a small cough caught their attention. Quickly separating, they looked over at the door to find Roman leaning against the frame. Letty gave Dom a small smile and pulled off her gloves, giving them to him as she told him they should probably end there and that she needed to get going. Grabbing her stuff, Letty pushed past Roman and out of the gym.

"Look, Roman, it's not what it looks like," Dom tried to explain before he was interrupted by Roman's raised hand.

"I don't care about that. I'm not going to pretend to be your best mate and give you some brotherly advice but I will tell you this. Letty is in a vulnerable position – everybody here is."

"I'm not seeing your point," Dom interrupted.

"I would advise you to stay away from Letty until she gets better. I know that this training thing is beneficial to you both and I would encourage it to continue for as long as possible. But the added bonuses will confuse her, it will confuse you. If you want to go for it, go for it. But wait until she's a little bit better. It will make everything go smoother in the long run." Roman explained, still not moving from his position by the door.

"In the long run?" Dom asked, slightly confused. Roman sighed, Dom just didn't get what he was being told.

"Right now she needs to focus on overcoming her demons and anything else could distract her. Leaving her to it and resuming whatever you two have later will be better for everyone."

"Have you been speaking to Gisele recently? Or my sister? Because you are starting to sound a lot like them," Dom said.

"No, just think about what I said. I'll see you later."

As Roman walked off, Dom thought about what he had said. He didn't even know what he had with Letty. The almost kiss had been as much as a surprise to him as it had been to Roman yet it all felt right. He had only known her for almost a week but he was already meeting her every Saturday for training and had almost kissed her. He definitely needed to lay off on the personal stuff.

"What have I got myself into?" Dom muttered to himself.

Returning the gloves and pads to the cupboard, Dom took ten minutes to collect the mats, roll them up and put them back where he had found them. Then picking up his bags and switching off the lights, he headed out the building and to his car to drive to uni.

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	6. Chapter 6

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

Thank you for all your lovely reviews!

* * *

_Monday 14__th__ September 2014_

"Alright girls, here we are again," Suki said. She had taken the girls back to boutique to search for some more dresses. As Neela already had her dress, she had made it her personal mission to find Letty a dress.

"How's your elbow?" Neela asked Letty as they looked for a dress.

"A lot better."

_Sunday 13__th__ September 2014_

"_Now we're going to move onto our second part of our group session today. Neela, I'd like to pair up with Kieran, Letty with Morgan and Lucile with Nico." _

_As the group moaned and grumbled about their pairings, Gisele quickly looked over her plan of the session. She would make them do a basic trust challenge first, falling into each other's arms. It was designed to help them to trust each other, like they would need to with others in the 'real' world. Gisele had paired them up herself this week to help mix the group up, helping them interact with a range of different people._

"_Okay, so if you want to choose who is catching first and who is falling first then you can get started."_

"_I don't mind catching first unless you have any objections," Letty said to Kieran, her partner._

"_That's fine. I don't know if you want to find somewhere with a bit more space first," Kieran suggested._

"_Yeah."_

_After Letty agreed, the pair moved towards a free corner of the room. Bending her legs for support, Letty put her arms out and waited for Kieran to fall. He checked quickly behind him to make sure Letty was ready before falling backwards. Letty caught him with ease, not even needing to take a step back to support his weight. Giving him a gentle push up, they swapped places, Kieran ready to catch Letty. Similarly to Kieran, Letty looked behind her to make sure Kieran was ready before falling backwards._

"_Alright, once you've all caught and fell once, go again. It's important to learn that trusting someone is a journey, rather than a onetime thing."_

"_You want to catch first again?" Kieran asked Letty as they turned away from Gisele once she'd finished talking._

"_I can do if you want me to." Letty stood behind Kieran again and held her arms out. Like last time, he fell into them before they swapped. "Ready?"_

_Kieran nodded before Letty started to fall. As she relaxed her balance, a loud crash from outside the room gathered Kieran's attention and he momentarily forgot about Letty and catching her. As no one caught her, Letty put out her hands to break her fall and ended up landing on her elbow. Hissing slightly, she grabbed her elbow before standing up and whacking Kieran on the arm. "You were meant to catch me."_

"_Sorry."_

_Seeing Letty clutching her elbow, Gisele went over to her to see what was happening. After she heard the story, she gathered everyone round._

"_Letty and Kieran are a good example of how people can easily get distracted. Letty had put her trust in Kieran but he got distracted. His actions ended up with Letty falling to the ground and hurting herself. Not only does this example work physically, but also mentally. All of you at some point have put your trust in someone, they ended up getting distracted and as a result of this, you can barely trust anyone. In these sessions, we are working on building up this trust again. Not to an individual person but the theory that not everyone is out to hurt you."_

_Monday 14__th__ September 2014 (continued)_

"Letty, you need to get this dress," Neela gushed, holding up a pink dress.

"No, I am not wearing a pink dress. It's not happening."

"You're such a spoil sport."

"No I'm not," Letty insisted. "I'm trying not to look like a Barbie."

"Spoil sport."

Figuring that Neela would end up being the one to choose her dress, Letty took a seat on one of the many chairs in the middle of the room. After a series of unsuitable dresses, Letty stood up and headed over to Neela as Suki came over.

"How are we doing girls?" Suki asked.

"Everything I pick up is not good," Neela told Suki in regards to Letty's dress.

"Maybe Letty should have a go at choosing her dress," Suki suggested, concealing a small laugh as she saw Letty's unimpressed facial expression.

"Dress shopping is not really me," she said. "If I have my own way, I wouldn't even go to the ball in the first place."

"But you don't have a choice so I guess you'll need to find dress pretty quickly. There's a few more bits round the corner that I don't think you've looked at so we can start there."

Following Suki, Letty and Neela started to look through the next rail of dresses. Starting at either ends, the pair worked inwards to meet in the middle. Not really bothered about the dress, Letty threw her hand into the rail and pulled out a random dress. It was a plain, floor-length dress. With a halter neck and a low back, it had a small band of detailing around the waist. Pulling it off the rail, Letty got Neela's attention before holding it up against herself, showing it off to Neela prior to observing the look in a nearby mirror. It was minimalistic and very Letty.

"I really like it," Neela told Letty.

"Ah, Letty. That is absolutely gorgeous," Suki gushed, running her hand down the material of the dress. "This is a definite yes."

"Do you think so?"

"Yes. Go try it on." Suki pushed Letty in the direction of the changing rooms. After changing into the dress, Letty took a moment to admire herself in the mirror. The halter neck covered up her chest while exposing the skin on her back.

"Have you got it on yet?"

"I'm coming out now." Letty pushed the curtain back and walked out the changing room. Both Suki and Neela gushed as Letty gave them a turn, a small smile creeping up on her face.

"Letty, it's gorgeous."

"Yeah?"

"Definitely. Go and put your clothes back on so we can pay for it."

"Got it."

* * *

"How you doing mate?" Roman said as he walked into Brian's classroom.

"Not bad," Brian said, a smile covering his face.

"Why are you so smiley all of a sudden?"

"No reason."

Roman studied Brian as he took a seat at one of the front desks. "You don't have that kind of smile on your face for no reason."

Brian sighed and put his pen down. Leaning back on his chair and resting his hands behind his head, a another smile came onto his face as he thought of Mia and their new relationship. Their kiss had been electrifying and if that was to happen from just a kiss, he could only imagine what would follow if they were allowed a bit more time together. Leaning forwards and moving his arms so that he could rest his elbows on the table, Brian put his head in his hands, trying to think of a way to tell Roman about him and Mia without really telling him and breaking his promise to Mia.

"My professional relationship with Mia has crossed the boundaries into non-professional."

"No way." Roman smiled, it had been a long time coming.

"But you can't tell anyone, Rome." Roman flashed a smile. "I mean it. I promised her that I wouldn't tell anyone."

"This happened when exactly?"

"Friday."

"This has been going on four days and she's already got you hooked around her little finger. Damn you got it bad."

"Tell me about it. I'm worried though."

"About what?" Roman asked. By the sounds of it, things could not be going more perfect.

"Basically, Mia came into here when I was teaching the C Warders and asked to speak to me. Long story short, we kissed and Sofia walked in. After the 'what the hell do you think you're doing' chat and everything that goes along with it, I left so that Sofia and Mia could talk alone and after I left I could hear them talking about something and 'letting go of the past'. I can't help but think that I'm missing something."

"I'm sure it's nothing major. But if you're worried just go and talk to Mia about."

"I don't want to upset her or anything though."

"Think about like this – would you rather sort it out now and if it doesn't work then it doesn't and you can go back to some sense of normality with a friendship lasting for years. Or would you rather spend months with her then when the topic comes up again, everything goes sour and you destroy any type of friendship you ever had?"

"I think I'll just go and talk to her about it now."

"Good idea."

"Can I leave you to lock up here?"

"Yeah, no worries."

Brian gave Roman a quick fist bump before leaving the room. Pulling his phone from his back pocket, Brian rang Mia. When she answered, they exchanged the usual questions of how each other was and how their day had been. Knowing she had taken the bus to university, Brian had offered to pick her up and take her out for a bite to eat on the way home. Accepting, Mia agreed to meet Brian in half an hour outside the university gates.

"And to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" Mia said as she got into Brian's car.

"I'll explain when we get to the cafe."

"I hope it's not too serious."

"It depends on the way you look at it," Brian said.

"You're worrying me."

"Don't worry about it, it'll all be fine."

Arriving at the cafe, they took a seat at the table before ordering two coffees and a cake each. Once they arrived, Mia took a small sip of her drink before waiting for Brian to start.

"Look, Mia. I don't want you to get the impression that I was listening in on the conversation you were having with your mum on Friday-"

"-But you heard either way," Mia interrupted.

"Yes. You mentioned something about the past, and that your mum needed to let go of it. I just need to know if there's something that we, or you, need to sort out before we go any further."

"What makes you think that you have any right to bring that up," Mia said, turning defensive. "It's been four days and you have started to find ways to get out of this."

"Let me stop you there. I have no intentions of stopping what we have. I would just like to know if there's anything you're holding back from me."

"Yeah, alright, whatever." Mia stood up from the table, her forceful movement causing the table to jolt and a splash of her still relatively full coffee to run down her cup and onto its saucer. "I'll hail a cab home."

"Mia, wait," Brian called out after her. But she had already waltzed through the door.

"Trouble in paradise, eh?" A man asked Brian.

"Something like that."

"Welcome to the world of women, son."

By the time Mia had gotten home, the rain was pouring out the skies and she had to make a quick dash into the house. Noting Dom's car in the driveway, she mentally made a note to go and speak to him about Brian later. He was the only one who would sit there and listen. Sofia would just bring everything up again and Tony would make threats under his breath. Dom was the safest bet.

"Mum?" Mia called through the house.

"Just me," Dom said as he came through to the kitchen from the lounge.

"That's good."

"Why?"

"I'll tell you in a minute. But for now, can you just make us some hot chocolates and fetch the blankets while I get changed?"

"Just like old times?"

"Just like old times."

When Mia came back downstairs, Dom was waiting on the sofa with the blankets and two mugs of hot chocolate. Patting the space next to him, Dom invited Mia to sit down and she quickly cuddled into his warm embrace. In silence, Dom gently stroked Mia's hair and kissed the top of her head.

"Do you ever think about Damian?" Mia asked. Dom stopped his movements. He hadn't heard that name in three years and he didn't plan on hearing it again for a long time.

"What's brought this on?"

"Brian."

"What's he done, little piece of-"

"It's fine, calm down." Mia smiled at her brother's overprotective side. "He heard me and mum talking about it after she caught us." Mia had told Dom about her new relationship with Brian on Saturday. While he hadn't been overly excited about it, he had given Brian the benefit of the doubt.

"And?" Dom prompted.

"We went out to a cafe earlier and he asked me about it and I completely lost it. Now I feel like an idiot but at that point I was so wrapped up by the fact that he had asked, I just lost the plot a bit."

"If you tell him I'm sure he'll understand."

"I don't want to tel him. I don't want him to think of me like that."

"He won't. He's a decent enough guy. I'm sure he adores you."

"I really hope so."

"If he doesn't already for some strange reason, he will do eventually. Now drink your hot chocolate."

* * *

_Tuesday 16__th__ September 2014_

"So now you've got your dress, have you thought about your hair and your make-up?"

Neela and Letty were sitting on Neela's bed discussing the upcoming ball. On Monday, they had finalised the accessories to go with their dresses and now all they needed to worry about was finishing their appearance. Originally, Letty's plan was to be as natural as she was allowed and to just go with the flow. Now, the more she talked about the ball and the more she thought about it, she was getting more into the idea of dressing up.

"I want to make a bit of an effort but not too much if you know what I mean," Letty explained to Neela.

"I feel you. Enough for people to know you're in the room but not enough so that you stand out for all the wrong reasons.

"Exactly."

"Can I suggest something to you?" At Letty's nod, she continued. "Ever since I was younger, I wanted something to do with make-up and hair."

"I have a feeling I know where this is going."

"Come on, Letty. If you don't like it, you can take it straight off and do your own. All I'm asking for is a chance to make you look absolutely drop dead gorgeous. I have all the make-up, all the hair products. Just take a shower and come to my room."

"Fine."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Brilliant. So one Saturday we can go ahead with the fake tan-"

"Okay, I'm going to stop you right there. I am not having a fake tan. I don't know whether you're in need of glasses or something but I'm not exactly pale."

"I'm aware of that but still, everyone needs a booster sometimes."

"Neela, I've seen how these things go. I'm not turning into an oompa lumpa."

"I'll do it so you won't," Neela tried to reason.

"And my bed sheets will end up going a funny colour. I don't want to be lying in dried up fake tan for the next two and a half months every time I go to sleep."

"Alright then, if you insist," Neela said, her bottom lip starting to poke out and wobble slightly. Her eyes also produced a quilt of tears.

"Those eyes aren't going to work on me."

Neela drew back her lip and gave Letty a playful glare. Moving off her bed and into the bathroom, Neela grabbed a bag full of nail varnishes. Unzipping the bag, Neela rummaged around before finding a silver shade. Unscrewing the top, she slowly painted her nails, making sure the brush reached all the way to neat cuticles and all the way to the tip of her nail. While she painted her nails, Neela told Letty to look inside the bag and find a varnish that would suit her dress for the ball.

"I don't really do nail varnish," Letty admitted, a hand buried deep inside the bag.

"It's for one night, I'm sure you can live with it."

"I'm not sure I can."

"Do you not want to wear it when you're older?"

"If I get to where I want to be, I won't be allowed to wear it," Letty told Neela. Neela briefly paused to blow gently on her nails. "Surely hot air would work better drying your nails?"

"You would think so but actually it's cold air you need. Or a bowl of ice-cold water. You see, the hot air only melts the nail varnish, taking it longer to dry. I used to hold my nails under my light bulb until I found out."

"I guess you learn something new every day."

"Back to the topic, what do you want to do when you're older?"

"I want to be a cardiologist."

"Ooh, you never seemed like that sort of type to me. Don't you need some pretty high qualifications for that?"

"Yeah, can you keep a secret?"

"Yeah."

"I mean really keep a secret. If you don't keep it and word gets out, what I'm about to tell you will never happen and my life will be ruined," Letty said, slightly exaggerating the situation.

"I'm sure. Tell me."

"When I took my little solo trip last Monday, Dom got me and took me back here. On the Tuesday, I saw him and through conversation told him that I wanted to become a cardiologist when I was older but because of everything that ended me in here, that had a pretty slim chance of happening. He told Sofia and-"

"She didn't go total bitch on you did she? I can't see her doing that."

"She didn't. She basically told me that she could arrange for me to go on a taster course at the local uni to see what it's all about. If I like it then I could carry on if she says so and if I don't then I know I don't want to be a cardiologist and I can move on and find another career."

"God bless Dom."

"Either way it'll be beneficial."

"So what's the problem?"

"Amelia."

"Amelia?"

"The fight we had. Apparently, it wasn't dead and buried."

Neela raised her eyebrows and Letty could only give a nod of confirmation. "What have you got to prove to get in then? Or is it just a wait and see type thing and whenever she feels like it, she'll put you in for it."

"Not quite. She wants three weeks of good behaviour and then I'll get the taster course."

"That seems a bit harsh."

"You haven't heard the worst of it yet. When she says 'good behaviour', she means, no back chatting, no lip, no fighting, no verbal fights, no cutting. I mean, I've gotten a lot better with my cutting but it's still hard to stop completely."

Neela nodded her agreement. "It took me a while. But I guess it will show how much you really want this. Does Gisele know?" Neela asked.

"I'm not sure. I'll bring it up tomorrow and see what she thinks of it all."

As her last nail dried and she gingerly tested it by quickly pressing it with another finger, Neela gave her nails a quick blow before chucking her silver varnish back in the bag, zipping it up and taking it back into the bathroom. Grabbing another make-up bag from the shelf, Neela opened it and showed her the large quantity of make-up she owned. From foundation to concealer, to mascara to eyeliner, Neela had it all. Grabbing a large palette, Neela held up the different shades to Letty's face and began to make a mental note of what colours she needed to use.

"Is all this necessary?" Letty asked in reference to Neela's make-up kit.

"Yes, now shush so I can concentrate."

* * *

_Wednesday 17__th__ September 2014_

"Have you heard about my challenge from Sofia?" Letty asked Gisele once they were sitting comfortably.

"What deal would this be?"

"The cardiologist one."

"I haven't," Gisele said, subconsciously moving forward so she could hear more.

"You haven't? I thought you would be one of the first ones to know."

"Clearly not, but please, tell me more."

"Sofia found out through Dom that I've wanted to be a cardiologist ever since I was a child. She then told me that it could be possible but I would need to be taught by somebody outside of the centre. But because of everything that happened with Amelia, she's now got me on good behaviour for three weeks so that she can see if I really want this or not."

"You really want this don't you?"

"Yeah."

"I can tell. The way you speak about it is the most upbeat and liveliest way I've ever heard you talk about anything before. But since we're going back to your younger years, maybe it's time to start looking at how you came to be at the centre."

Gisele caught Letty's attention and she instantly sat up straight in her chair. Her eyes widened considerably and she wobbled slightly in her seat. She had never needed to talk about it before and this was one of the main reasons why she had hated the idea of the centre so much in the first place. Letty had never been one for talking about her problems out loud, let along to someone else.

"I know you're scared, Letty, It's healthy to be nervous." Gisele's words did nothing to calm her down and if anything she found herself getting more and more wound up. The balls of her feet were now tapping quickly on the floor and her finger nails were beating against the desk in a rhythmic movement.

"I don't normally do the whole talking thing."

"Maybe now is a good place to start," Gisele suggested. "I'll just sit here and listen, no notes, no interruptions. You can just go with the flow. If things get a bit hard, we can move through them together."

"Can we go with the prompts again? Last time it made it a lot easier to start talking."

"Of course, when did you first start cutting?"

"About two years ago."

"What first introduced you into cutting? Was it just something you did without thinking about it? Something you saw on the television? Something you heard about on the radio?"

"I knew about from the tv, radio, movies. But when I started, it just sort of happened."

"Do you think anything influenced your decision to cut as opposed to any other method of hurting yourself? Like an eating disorder?"

"One of the girls at my school once told me that she was going to cut me up once. I don't know whether that's got anything to do with it or not."

"Did you ever find pleasure in cutting yourself or did you do it because it came as the natural thing to do and just kept going?"

"In the beginning it felt good to be in control of the situation. When they told me they were gonna cut me up, I guess I sort of felt like if I cut myself first then I would be in charge of the situation. Then it carried on and got out of hand," Letty explained. Gisele made a mental note to write it up later.

"When you think of your journey of self-harm and how you got form your starting position to here, what do you automatically think of?"

"How I've disappointed my mum," Letty said, a hint of sadness to her voice.

"Why do you think that?" Gisele questioned. She figured she knew why but Letty needed to say it for herself.

"Because I've put her through so much, on top of what she's already gone through already. I feel bad for this happening after everything with my dad and all the stuff she went through with him and then without him."

"You're lucky to have your mum, Letty. A true mother will go around the globe for their children, you've got that," Gisele said, sadness and resentment coming through her voice.

"Did you not have that with your mum?" Letty asked.

"I did, but only for a short while. She died when I was eight."

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine. It was a long time ago."

"Do you think it changed you?"

"Aren't I the one meant to be asking the questions?" Gisele tried to joke. Seeing Letty's raised eyebrows, Gisele sighed. "I think it made me into the person I am today. If she had never died, I wouldn't have worked nearly as hard as I did to get where I am now. I didn't want to disappoint her, just like you don't want to disappoint your mum. But me and my dad got through it all in the end."

"For what it's worth I think you're very brave."

"Thank you. I also think you're very brave for coming here and dealing with your demons."

"I wouldn't call me brave, my mum was the one the signed me up and told me not even a week before I started here that we were going."

"But you're here now. And you've survived more than two weeks. Bravery isn't always about the most obvious things. To any normal person on the street this would seem average. But to everybody here, it's an incredibly brave thing to do because you're sticking at it and you're not backing down."

"That was surprisingly comforting," Letty said, leaning back into her chair.

Gisele got up from her desk and walked towards one of her cabinets. Pulling the drawer open, she pulled out a big folder and carried it over to her desk, dumping it down with a big thump. Opening it up, she flicked to the relevant page and looked over it. It was a list of all the homework tasks she set and the order in which they should be done. Flicking in a few pages, Gisele found the next piece.

"Your next homework is rather easy."

"What is it?" Letty asked.

"Describe in one word or phrase what you aim to get out of your experience at the Elizabeth Rose Centre."

As she noticed the seconds hand of the clock forty seconds off the hour, Letty stood up and walked towards the door. "I can answer that now for you if you like."

"Go on then," Gisele prompted.

"Freedom from my own mind." With that, Letty walked out and back towards the West Wing.

* * *

**Letty's red dress is inspired by Reese Witherspoon in Water For Elephants. **

**R&amp;R**


	7. Chapter 7

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

Thank you all so much for your lovely reviews. They make me so happy :)

* * *

_Thursday 18__th__ September 2014_

Okay, everyone. Turn to page eleven, we're going to be looking at the relationship between George and Lennie today," Sophie said, grabbing her own copy of Of Mice and Men.

'_There's enough beans for four men,' George said._

_Lennie watched him from over the fire. He said patiently, 'I like 'em with ketchup.'_

'_Well, we ain't got any,' George exploded. 'Whatever we ain't got, that's what you want. God a'mighty, if I was alone I could live so easy. I could go get a job an' work, an' no trouble. No mess at all, and when the end of the month come I could take my fifty bucks and go into town and get whatever I want. Why, I could stay in a cat house all night. I could eat any place I want, hotel or any place, and order any damn thing I could think of. An' I could do all that every damn month. Get a gallon of whiskey, or set in a pool room and play cards or shoot pool.' _

_Lennie knelt and looked over the fire at the angry George. And Lennie's face was drawn with terror. 'An' whatta I got,' George went on furiously. 'I got you! You can't keep a job and you lose me ever' job I get. Jus' keep me shovin' all over the country all the time. An' that ain't the worst. You get in trouble. You do bad things and I got to get you out.' _

"Just from that extract, what can we find out about the relationship between George and Lennie?" Sophie asked.

"I think we can see that George is a bit of a hothead and doesn't think about what he is saying before he says it," Neela said. "He seems to be quite a negative person, he focuses more on the faults of Lennie rather than the positives, such as the fact that he is a good farm worker and is really strong."

"Well done, Neela. That's a good analysis of George. But make sure that you include how this affects the relationship between George _and _Lennie. And to make your answer even better, think about adding some examples in there, picking out single words and really going into depth analysing them."

"Could you say that he is very aggressive?"

"In what way?"

"The way Steinbeck uses 'exploded' and 'furiously' as his speech tags. To me, it seems like the attitude of someone who has a lot of pent up anger and has just lost the will to contain it all and it has ended up with Lennie being on the receiving end of it. I don't think the relationship is aggressive, just the way that George behaves and from reading the rest of the book, you can see that he's really protective over Lennie, not aggressive towards him."

"Well done. I think you're right. George's relationship with Lennie seems to be pretty set. From the rest of the book, we can see that normally George is kind and considerate towards Lennie."

_George looked quickly and searchingly at him. 'I been mean, ain't I?'_

'_If you don' want me I can go off in the hills an' find a cave, I can go away any time.'_

'_No – look! I was jus' foolin', Lennie. 'Cause I want you to stay with me. Trouble with mice is you always kill 'em.' He paused. 'Tell you what I'll do, Lennie. First chance I get I'll give you a pup. Maybe you wouldn't kill it. That'd be better than mice. And you could pet it harder.'_

_Lennie avoided the bait. He had sensed his advantage. 'If you don't want me, you only jus' got to say so, and I'll go off in those hills right there – right up in those hills and live by myself. An' I won't get no mice stole from me.'_

_George said, 'I want you to stay with me, Lennie. Jesus Christ, somebody'd shoot you for a coyote if you was by yourself. No, you stay with me. Your Aunt Clara wouldn't like you running off by yourself, even if she is dead.' _

"Can someone kill me now?" Letty whispered to Neela.

"Are you not enjoying it?" Neela whispered back, slightly teasing.

"No." Letty gritted her teeth and forced her words out through them. "I could read this book back to front by memory. My mum gave me this book to go over and analyse last year. Only it was the wrong book. Idiot."

"Letty, this is our third week on it. Not our third year."

"I know that. But the last two weeks were alright, just a quick run through but now it's boring. Next topic."

Neela laughed quietly. "Watch out. You don't want to be brought in by Sofia for being disobedient."

"That's not even funny," Letty said, giving Neela a blank look. "This is my time to shine."

"Yes, it is your time to shine, Letty." The sound of Sophie brought Neela and Letty back to the front of the room and they looked down and pressed their lips together to stop themselves from smiling. "What do you think of this extract?"

"George is aware that he has crossed the line and feels bad about it. He also comes across as quite desperate, backed up by the use of an exclamation mark. He then tries to draw Lennie back in by offering him a pup, even though he knows that Lennie shouldn't really be trusted around them. But he does it anyway because he's lonely." Letty paused for breath.

"That's wonderful, Letty. Well done."

"I'm not finished," Letty snapped. "However, we can see later on that he is afraid of showing his real emotions to Lennie. He's afraid of not being seen as a strong man by Lennie and to assert his masculinity he goes on about Aunt Clara and how she wouldn't want Lennie running off and ending up dead as opposed to George himself feeling that way."

"Well done," Sophie said, slightly bitter.

"That's one way to show someone up," Neela said to Letty as they packed their things up.

"I try my best," Letty smirked.

* * *

_Friday 19__th__ September 2014_

"Oi, Letty," Amelia called out.

"Don't even bother answering back to her," Neela said to Letty. "She does it to everyone at some point or another. She just wants attention."

"Oi, I'm talking to you." Amelia stalked over to where Neela and Letty were sitting. "Don't ignore me."

"Oh, Amelia. Why don't you just piss off and find someone else to bother," Neela said.

"Oh, look who's piped up girls. Little Neela. Looks like Letty has brought you out of your shell a bit. Speaking of Letty," Amelia turned to face the girl in question. "I was talking to you."

As Amelia leaned closer to Letty's face, Sofia and Elena came around the corner. Seeing Amelia and Letty, Elena made to advance towards the pair. Sofia put her arm out to stop her before guiding them both so they had a better view. In Sofia's eyes, it was the perfect opportunity to see whether Letty would be able to keep her side of the bargain. After telling Elena the basics of her deal with Letty and Letty agreeing to the terms of the taster session, Sofia waited for Letty to do something.

"Amelia, I don't want any trouble. I just want to go through this, do well at class and get out of here and I'm sure that's want you want too."

"Well, guess what. It's not going to happen."

Letty sighed and rubbed her temples with her fingertips. Was she ever going to get the message? "I'm not going to fight with you. It's not worth it. Just leave me alone."

"I'm going to make your life a living hell," Amelia threatened.

"I'd like to see you try." Letty stood up and got her bags together, starting to walk away. "But while you think about it, head back to your little groupies and piss off."

As Letty walked off, a chorus of 'oh' and 'ouch' were directed at Amelia, with someone even shouting 'do you want some ice for that burn?' Huffing and crossing her arms, Amelia turned on her heel and stomped out of the hall, her fan club scurrying after her.

"She took that better than I expected," Sofia commented. "I was expecting an outburst, I guess I was wrong."

"To be honest with you, I never really saw her as a trouble maker. I think to hold that one altercation against her for the rest of her time here would be ridiculous."

"I agree, I was a bit hasty. But I still want her attitude to improve so I'll just see where she goes with what I told her to do and go from there."

"Is that not a bit harsh?" Elena asked. She had been lied to many a times before and it was not the nicest feeling in the world.

"Maybe, maybe not. But we'll just have to wait and see, won't we?"

Sofia flashed Elena a smile before walking in the direction of the North Wing. Seeing Letty walk away from Amelia was all the proof she needed to know that giving Letty the taster course would be a brilliant decision. Of course, she had never really doubted her in the beginning – it didn't take a genius to know that when Letty wanted something, she would work her hardest to achieve it. Heading towards the science lab, she poked her head around the door and saw Han, the science teacher, marking some books.

"Han, how are you?" Sofia questioned, perching on the edge of a stool.

"Not bad, not bad at all. What brings you down here?" Han questioned.

"Letty Ortiz, what do you think of her?"

Han put down his pen. "I think she's a very hard worker and has an obvious talent for science. Her physics is a little weak but her biology and chemistry is outstanding. The test we did on the first week back proved that. Why?"

"It has come to my attention that she wants to be a cardiologist in the future. I am willing to put her on a taster course to show her what it's like and to try and see if that changes her opinion of the career. I just wanted your opinion," Sofia explained. She appreciated how much the teaching staff knew about the patients and she wanted to use that knowledge as much as she could.

"I think it's a great idea. Get her focussed on something."

"Thanks, Han. I appreciate it."

As the bell for first lesson went, Neela and Letty walked into maths before taking their usual seats. Their tests had been handed back to them the previous week and they were just going through them and correcting the few questions they hadn't managed to before. Scoring 83%, Letty was on track for a good mark in her final exam.

"I actually got this one right," Neela said, in regards to question twenty-three.

"I got the method marks but apparently two times three is five according to me."

"Oh dear. And I thought you were good at maths."

Letty stifled a laugh. "I thought I was too!"

As a class, they went through the rest of the paper and they spent the remainder of the lesson either correcting their answers or adding in steps of the method. Any work that was not completed would be done as homework. At the end of the lesson, Roman called Letty over to his desk before dismissing Neela.

"Letty, firstly, well done one your test."

"Thank you."

"Secondly, about what happened between you and Dom on Saturday. I understand that you're training and that you are doing this to help Dom with his university course but what I walked in on shouldn't have really been happening."

"I don't think it's really your place to be commenting on the situation," Letty defended. It wasn't as if something had actually happened.

"I understand why you wouldn't want my advice but as I've said to Dom, you're not in the position at this current moment in time to start making commitments to anyone outside the centre who isn't a family member. Whether you like it or not, you're vulnerable and some people will get a kick out of taking advantage of you. I don't want you to become one of those people, Letty. You have potential – lots of it."

"As I said before, it's not your place. And unless you've been sitting in on my sessions with Gisele without permission, you have absolutely no idea about how I'm getting on. And quite frankly, it's none of your business anyway."

"I'm just trying to help you," Roman said. "All I want is for you to get better and bringing Dom into the equation isn't going to help, or speed up the process. Just think about it."

* * *

_Saturday 20__th__ September 2014_

"I need your help," Amelia said.

Amelia and Michael Henderson, a long term South B who was well known for his troublesome ways, were standing inside the doorway of an empty classroom, chests pressed together. They had been an on/off couple for the last four months, although they were currently more on than off. Her hands slipped down Michael's back and into his back pockets. Going to stand on her tip toes, she run her tongue lightly across Michael's lips before bringing him in for a kiss.

"With what?" Michael asked. A mischievous grin snaked across his face. With a record in the centre longer than Amelia's, any opportunity for a good time was a good one.

"A small problem I have," Amelia teased. Not only was Michael her boyfriend, he was also her personal thug to some extent. If she had a problem with one of the boys, he would go and sort it out for her and vice versa. She wasn't physically strong enough to take on one of the boys and he couldn't go around hitting girls. It highlighted one of the centre's weaknesses. Sofia and Tony believed in second chances and not giving up on anybody. If they weren't, Amelia and Michael would have been kicked out the day they walked in.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with Letty Ortiz, would it?" Michael guessed. He has been hearing about yesterday's incident non-stop.

"Of course it would. She showed me up big time yesterday and I'm not letting her get away with it."

Michael kissed her again. "I wouldn't expect anything less. Do you have anything in mind?"

"Nothing concrete but it's got to have something to do with the ball. It's the perfect opportunity to show her up.I don't want to go small so we need to make it big and bold."

"We?"

"Of course, we're a team aren't we?" Amelia asked.

"Absolutely. Did you hear about her deal with Sofia?"

"No?"

"Oh well. It looks like there's a bit of favouritism going around. Apparently, little Letty wants to be a cardiologist in the future so Sofia has told her that if she gets three weeks good behaviour, she'll arrange a taster session for her."

Amelia gasped. Little bitch. "Well I guess a bit of bad behaviour would be devastating then."

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"That depends, what are you thinking?"

"A little bit of alcohol could make the evening interesting."

Amelia smirked. It would be the perfect way to embarrass Letty and destroy all the chances of her going on the taster course. "I like it. I like it a lot."

"I'll make some calls later." During his time at the centre and due to Sofia's love of having a ball every now and again, Michael had built up some good connections with the bar staff. And he had no doubt that if he told them who Letty was and asked them to make all her drinks alcoholic, they would do it. Of course a couple threats and a small sum of money helped considerably.

"Maybe get TJ in on it?"

"Yeah, he's good. How did it go yesterday with Sofia?"

"The usual 'your behaviour must improve soon Amelia' speech. All Letty's fault again."

_Friday 19__th__ September 2014_

_After her therapy session, Amelia walked out of the North Wing to find Sofia waiting for her. The older woman was flicking through some folders while leaning up against the doorframe. Slowing to a stop, she stayed quiet as Sofia told her that she expected to see her in her office at the start of lunch. From Sofia's tone of voice and the disapproving look on her face, she could tell that she was in a lot of trouble for what had happened at breakfast that morning. _

"_I expect to see you there, Amelia. And not a minute late."_

"_Yes, Sofia."_

_As the lunch bell rang, Amelia knocked on Sofia's door and she was welcomed inside. Sofia gestured for her to take a seat before starting._

"_Amelia, I'm so disappointed in you," Sofia started. "I was expecting a lot more understanding and a lot more maturity if I'm to be fairly honest with you."_

"_Did you not hear what she was saying to me?" Amelia defended. She could not believe it. How comes she was being dragged into Sofia's office but Letty wasn't?_

"_Amelia, I heard every word. I am fed up with you causing trouble everywhere you go, it's not acceptable. I know we are very lenient here but you are pushing the boundaries too far. I can't have you doing this anymore."_

"_I don't mean for it to happen the way it does," Amelia said. She figured she was in trouble anyway so trying to play on Sofia's emotions a bit could only help her. "If it was Mia, you wouldn't want it to happen."_

"_Don't bring her into this, it has nothing to do with her. I'm banning you from the ball."_

"_What? You can't do that."_

"_I can, Amelia and I will. Maybe banning you from the ball will get through to you more than just a stern talking to from me."_

_Amelia run her fingers through her hair. She had to go to the ball so that she could get her own back on Letty. "I'm sorry for what I have done. And if you want me to apologise to Letty I will. This is the first time I've ever felt truly confident in my body. I have a dress that fits and I really want to showcase myself." If that didn't work, nothing would._

"_Okay. I was speaking to Riley earlier and she says that you're making excellent progress. But let me warn you, if anything happens that involves you between now and the time you leave here, I will have you put on your own. With none of your friends and you will be isolated until you leave or you can prove to me that you have changed enough to be allowed back in. Is that understood?"_

"_Yes."_

"_I was want you to say sorry to Letty and I will arrange a time which is convenient for you both and when I can be there to witness it. I've had two kids, I know when an apology isn't genuine."_

"_I understand that."_

_Saturday 20__th__ September 2014 (continued)_

"She threatened to stop you coming to the ball?"

"Yeah. I just want Letty to get what she deserves. I've to apologise to her at some point though, or Sofia really will stop me from going."

"You'll be fine."

"So that's where you've been hiding," Sofia said, surprising both Amelia and Michael who increased the distance between them slightly. "I've got Letty in my office waiting for your apology."

"Okay, give me two minutes?" Amelia asked, nodding her head towards Michael.

"Yes," Sofia sighed. "I'll see you in my office in five."

Amelia gave Michael a quick kiss before he deepened it, slipping his tongue into her mouth. Breaking it off and giving him a cheeky wink, Amelia went off to Sofia's office. Knocking on the door for the second time in two days, Amelia entered and took a seat next to Letty.

"When you're ready," Sofia prompted.

"Letty, I'm sorry for what I said to you. I know that I've been very cruel and unfair during the last couple of weeks and it was wrong of me to take advantage of you in your early stages here. I would like to put any differences that we have behind us and draw a line under it and wipe the slate clean. If you can't forgive me and can't accept my offer of friendship, I am sorry to have driven you to this decision but I hope we can remain civil."

"Thank you. I forgive you for what you said but I don't think friendship was ever going to happen between us. We can be civil and just leave it at that."

"That sounds good. Thank you for understanding."

"Letty, Amelia. I am very proud of both of you. The way both of you behaved wasn't brilliant but what you've just done has made up for that completely. You can go."

Amelia stood up and made a beeline for door while Letty hovered behind. "You honestly think that was a true apology?" Letty questioned.

"I don't know. But just keep an eye out. Amelia can be very crafty when she wants to be."

* * *

_Sunday 21__st__ September 2014_

"So I've got the table names and sitting plan all written out but the tables still don't have table cloths on them. The balloons haven't even been blown up and-"

"You really need to stop stressing out," Tony interjected. "Everything is under control and organised. Don't worry about it. I've got Mia overseeing the kitchen to make sure that nothing goes wrong in there and Dom is rounding up some of his boys to help out with the ballroom. The DJ is coming later and the delivery for the bar is coming in about an hour."

Sofia sighed and Tony brought her in for a big hug. She fit neatly under his neck and her breaths tickled the small hairs on his skin. Pressing a kiss to her head, he slowly released her from his grasp and run a hand down her cheek. "Why don't you take a break? Go out, grab a coffee and come back in an hour or so and if nothing's been done you can panic then. Let me take care of it."

"Okay, are you sure?"

"Yes, leave, go," Tony insisted.

Sofia grabbed her handbag and slipped her phone inside. Taking her car keys out, Sofia kissed Tony on the cheek before heading towards the exit. Grabbing her checklist, Tony run his eyes down it and mentally checked off everything that was completed and everything that was on its way. Three packs of balloons needed to be blow up so he grabbed the pump and headed towards the ballroom.

"Hey dad. I rounded up some of the boys," Dom called over from the entrance of the ballroom to where his father was sitting at one of the many tables. "Where do you want us?"

"I'd appreciate it if you could start by putting table cloths on all the tables. I sent your mother out a while ago because she was starting to stress a bit too much."

"We'll get on it."

Dom and his uni mates grabbed the pile of tablecloths and split them between them. As Dom laid down an ivory cloth, his friend Matt set out a pale yellow cloth over the top, the material at a slight angle to create a diamond effect. After doing the tablecloths, Tony asked them to do the placemats and to use Sofia's seating plan and name cards to help them. Sofia had decided on sitting each ward together, with the Wings grouped at specific spots around the room with the therapists joining a table of their own.

"I think we're done here, dad," Dom said after almost an hour of work. Himself and Matt had done a pretty good job together.

"I think I'm pretty much done as well." Tony looked at his watch. "I know you've probably got places to be but I was wondering if I could just have you for another half an hour so I can get the balloons set up and then the majority of in here will be done until the deliveries get here."

"Of course, I don't mind," Matt said.

"Neither. How are you planning on doing them?"

"I was thinking about doing a bunch of five, three ivory and two yellow around the edge of the room. Dom, if you and Matt can string them then I'll get them attached to the weights and once you're done, you can start getting them set up around the room."

Dom nodded his approval and they set to work. Tony had already cut example lengths of ribbon so it was fairly easy for Dom and Matt to get started, Once they had cut out a few, they could estimate from looking at the ribbon.

"Where do you want these balloons, dad?" Dom asked.

"If you start in the far corner and then space them out maybe a couple of metres and we'll have a look afterwards and see if we need to add anymore or take some away."

"You look like you've been busy," Sofia commented as she put her bag down by the door and walked over to where Tony and Matt were working. "This is certainly an improvement from when I left earlier."

"I told you I had it under control," Tony said. "What do you think about the balloons? You're the decorative one in this partnership."

"I like them. Spaced nicely yet organised. Good."

"How was your coffee?"

"It was nice and refreshing. I definitely needed that break. No matter how much I love planning balls and functions, I get overwhelmed by the pressure every time."

"No you don't. This a big one, we could get some serious new sponsors."

"I know. I'm just going to head back to the office and check that Owen is still coming. After this week, I think it would be a good time for Letty to meet him and for them to have a little chat about it."

"Alright," Tony agreed. "We'll try and have this finished by the time you get back."

Kissing Tony goodbye and waving farewell to the boys, Sofia grabbed her bag and headed towards her office. Unlocking the door and relaxing into her seat, she kicked off her shoes while dialling Owen's number.

"Hello, you have reached the number for Owen Shaw, how can I help you?"

"Hi. My name is Sofia Toretto and Owen and I have an agreement about him giving a taster session to one of my patients at the Elizabeth Rose Centre."

"Give me a moment please. Yes, he is currently in a meeting at the moment but I can get him to call you back later if you'd like?"

"That won't be necessary. I was just calling to check that he is still able to attend the ball that is happening at the Elizabeth Rose Centre this evening."

"I believe he is. He has an appointment to pick up his suit from the dry cleaners later and he has a pre-paid booked for later on this evening as well so I assume that he is. Once he comes out his meeting, I will get him to give you a ring with some more details."

"Okay, thank you ever so much for your help."

Sofia put down the phone and laid back on her chair. Shutting her eyes, she mentally went over the plan of the ballroom in her head and who would be turning up. She had had a call from one of the sponsors while she was at the cafe telling her that due to unforeseen circumstances, they wouldn't be able to make it to the event personally but they would be sending someone on their behalf.

Tony poked his head around the door and coughed to get Sofia's attention. "All that can be done without the deliveries is done. Fancy a look?"

"Move out my way," Sofia joked. "This is going to be spectacular."

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	8. Chapter 8

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

Thank you my darlings for your lovely reviews. They definitely put a smile on my face. Here we have it, the ball.

* * *

_Sunday 21__st__ September 2014_

Once all the deliveries had arrived and Sofia had had a chance to go around and add all the personal touches to the table, the ballroom was almost completed. In the far corner, a space had been cleared for the various items included in the fundraising event. An auction would be happening after the dinner to raise money to go towards new equipment and employing staff to give more advice to patients about where they were planning to go and what they were planning to do after their time at the centre.

"So, we've allocated you a spot by the back of the room. We estimated how much gear you'd be bringing," Tony said, leading Tej Parker into the ballroom. He was a local DJ who the centre had worked with for many years. He had also provided the music for the centre's opening ball four years ago.

"Yeah, that seems about right," Tej agreed.

"You've got a bit of leeway if you need it in all directions so just make yourself comfortable. You know where the kitchen is if you need a quick bite to eat unless your mum has made you some sandwiches again."

Tej gave Tony a mild glare and the older man only laughed. It was a well known joke between the Torettos that Tej was mummy's boy and that was only confirmed when she had come along to the preparations of a function that the Torettos had held a few years ago with a small packed lunch box containing cheese and pickle sandwiches. She had even slotted it into a brown bag with an apple and a carton of milk. The Torettos, especially Tony and Dom, had never lived it down since.

"I still can't believe she did that," Tej mumbled to himself.

"I can. Your mum is always making someone laugh. Are you alright here now? Some people will be coming and going out of here soon but just ignore them. Unless of course you see anything that shouldn't be happening. You would never believe the amount of patients that try and sneak in to get a bottle for some pre-party drinks in their ward. As it is with any other event, if anyone asks for alcohol, tell them no and tell either me or Sofia."

"Yeah, I've got it."

"I'll leave you be and I'll come and see how you're getting on it a bit."

Back in West C, Neela had pounced on Letty at seven o' clock that morning and demanded she get into the shower. Letty had simply rolled over, pulled the covers over her head and told Neela to go away in the nicest way possible. "I'm not being funny or anything but it's seven o'clock in the morning. I need some beauty sleep, give me a couple of hours and then you can come and do whatever you like to me."

"Two hours? I have to wait _that_ long."

"Yes. Anyway, seeing as you promised to keep me looking as natural as possible, it shouldn't take too long to fix me up."

"Fine, whatever. I'll just sit on the edge of your bed and get some inspiration."

Letty gave her a thumbs up and buried herself even deeper into her covers. Falling asleep, she stayed in the same position for three hours before Neela woke her up with a gentle shake of the shoulder. "You gave me an extra hour," Letty commented as she saw the clock on her bedside table.

"Yeah. After this morning I figured that a Letty with sleep was better to work with than Letty with no sleep."

"That was nice of you."

"It was. Now shower and I'll get to work."

Letty followed her morning ritual and rolled straight out of bed, landing with a thud and crawling towards the bathroom. She quickly showered and washed her hair before patting herself dry and throwing on her dressing gown. Her hair dripped down her back and she collapsed into the chair Neela had pulled into her room. A makeshift table and mirror were already set up and Neela had got her make-up bag, hair dryer and curlers from her room ready.

"What are you planning on doing to me exactly?" Letty asked, looking wearily at Neela's wide range of products.

"Not much, just the average going out to somewhere fancy make-up. I'll do a bit of foundation, concealer, mascara and the stuff that comes with that. We're lucking that you almost have the same skin complexion so my shades should work fine on you," Neela said, grabbing a section of Letty's hair and beginning to blow-dry it.

"When are you going to do your own make-up?"

"When I've done yours, I did my nails again last night so they'll be fine."

"Again?"

"Yeah. The polish was starting to get a bit loose so I just sealed it with an extra coat. For your hair, I thought that maybe we could put it in the low bun but leave your fringe quite loose so you don't end up looking bald. I'll curl your hair first to give it a bit of texture, add some product and then style your fridge afterwards."

"I'm going to be honest with you, Neela. That went in one ear and out of other. I know nothing about this stuff, just don't let me end up looking bald."

"I plan on making both of us gorgeous. Besides, you never know who we're going to see," Neela winked.

Letty rolled her eyes. "I'm sure you'll have a good time finding out who's there."

"You will too! I'm not letting you sit this one out. Can you just bend down and plug the curlers in?"

Neela started up the curlers as Letty gave her hair a quick brush. Neela had dried it and then blasted it with cold air to give it a sleek shine. Sectioning her hair once again, Neela loosely curled Letty's hair in sections until it her whole head had been done. Spraying it with hairspray, she left it down until she had done Letty's make-up and would style it into a low bun just before they were ready to go. All patients were required to go down to the ballroom at five o'clock for photos and a last minute assembly from Sofia about the night before the VIP guests arrived.

"You don't have any allergies do you?" Neela asked, pulling a packet out of her make-up bag.

"Not that I know of, why?"

"I've got a couple of face masks and it would be cool to do them. Like a sleepover party only without the sleepover and the party."

"Go for it. You'll have to put mine on though because I tried to do one a couple of years ago with my mum and it went really badly."

"No worries," Neela said. "I've got you."

Neela opened the packet with her teeth and squeezed the liquid onto her hand. Making Letty lean her head back, she carefully applied it over Letty's face, watching out for her curls. Doing the same to her face, Neela and Letty laid there for five minutes while they waited for the masks to harden.

"Is this meant to do something to my face?" Letty asked, gingerly touching the edge of her face.

"Stop touching it, and yes. It's meant to soften the skin."

"If you say so," Letty mumbled.

Neela and Letty washed their masks off and headed off to lunch. Everybody was off timetable and the canteen was filled with the talk of dresses, suits and alcohol. When they got back, Letty was pushed back into the chair for her make-up. Starting with concealer and foundation, Neela applied a base coat before going over it with powder, bronzer and a small amount of blush. She then added some mascara to Letty's eyelashes and slightly filled in her eyebrows so that they were more defined.

"Where's your dress?" Neela asked.

"In my wardrobe," Letty said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Considering we've got an hour until we need to be down there, I think we should both get dressed then I can finish off with your hair and then we can go." Neela had done her make-up and straightened her hair while Letty read one of Neela's girly magazines.

Letty grabbed her dress from her wardrobe and slipped it on. It fitted exactly as it did when she first tried it on in the boutique. Sitting back on the chair, Letty slipped on her heels while Neela did her hair before they added their jewellery and grabbed their clutches.

"Are you ready?"

"Let's get this show on the road."

* * *

"Shh, shh," Sofia shouted, taking her place behind the microphone. The whole centre had been gathered in the main hall for a last minute assembly before photos were taken. "I'm sure I don't need to remind you that this is a very important event for more than one reason. As you already know, we are celebrating the centre's fourth anniversary and raising money it as well. Some very important people will be coming tonight and I expect your very best behaviour or there will be serious consequences. Understood?"

Sofia took the silence as agreement and stepped off the stage. Indicating for the photographer to take over, she joined Tony ready for the group photo. It would be printed into the local newspaper and online as a way of gaining sponsors for the centre. Standing in the middle of the crowd, Letty and Neela pulled their best smiles as the photographer snapped away. Letty's make-up was natural and her hair was swept back off her face, showcasing Neela's slight contouring around her skin. Neela had also kept her make-up natural, letting her hair and make-up do the talking.

"It looks really nice in here," Neela said as she walked into the ballroom. Their photos had been taken and now they were being led into the ballroom before the other guests arrived.

"They've done it up well," Letty agreed. "Drink?"

"Definitely."

While they couldn't drink alcohol, there were a range of non-alcoholic cocktails on offer. They were made using ingredients that would make them taste like the originals, much like the ones in the supermarkets. For the adults, there was alcohol but the bar staff had been given strict instructions that they were only allowed to serve alcohol to those that had received blue wristbands.

"I'll take a woo woo, I think. You?"

"Same," Neela agreed.

"No wristbands? Shame, we could have had some fun," the bartender flirted.

"Now now, TJ. Don't get ahead of yourself," Sofia said, coming up to the bar to order her own drink.

"I'm just teasing, Mrs Toretto. Don't worry."

"I hope so. Now, Letty, I've got someone coming from the university to talk to you about a taster day. I'm not sure exactly what time he's getting here but I thought I'd give you a heads up so you can get any questions you want to ask him in your head before you meet him. Is that okay?"

"That's brilliant, thank you."

"I'll catch up with you in a little bit then."

Sofia gave the girls a smile and TJ another warning glance before gliding off to meet the latest arrivals. Taking their drinks from TJ, they clinked their glasses together and took a sip of their drink.

"They actually taste like the real deal," Neela commented.

"That's the idea I think. I saw something before I came here about someone having a party and they swapped all the cocktails with these non-alcoholic versions to see how many people were pretending to be drunk. They found out a lot about who was being real and who wasn't."

"That just sounds mean. I'd be really pissed off if someone was pretending to give me alcohol when they really wasn't."

Neela and Letty walked back over to their table with their drinks in hand and starting a casual chat with some of the others on their ward. Tony silenced the chatter with a small tap of his spoon on his glass.

"Firstly, I would like to welcome you all to this ball in honour of the fourth anniversary of the Elizabeth Rose Centre. In 2010, me and my darling wife, Sofia, set up this centre to help the young people of this world get help when they need it. We have an absolutely amazing group of staff including counsellors and teachers, helping to make sure that our patients don't miss out on their education while in our care. So for them, can we please give a massive round of applause. I would also like to introduce my wife, Sofia to talk about the fundraising event which is all about raising money so we can continue to give the best care that we can. Sofia."

"Yes, following on from Tony, we have the fundraising event and I'd like to hand over to my daughter Mia, to start us off."

"Hello. Welcome. So you all purchased raffle tickets when you entered so we'll start off with the two day race track experience at the local track. This is courtesy of Arturo Braga, so thank you, now done to business." Mia dug her hand into the bowl of raffle tickets and pulled out a ticket. "And that is Blue, 453."

"That's me," Johnny Tran, a local businessman who owned a successful electronics shop, called out. Rising from his seat, he headed towards Mia before showing her his ticket and collecting the confirmation details.

"Well done, Johnny. Next is a three night stay in the Yas Marina hotel for two people during November's Abu Dubai Grand Prix. Tickets for the Grand Prix are also included in the prize. Good luck everyone." Mia picked out another ticket. "This one is Yellow, 072."

"Over here, Mia," Lauren English said. She was an ambassador for a national charity that helped young people overcome obstacles such as abuse.

"And we have a winner."

Mia continued with the same process through the rest of the prizes. They included a getaway to New York which was won by Dom and an ocean experience which included deep sea diving and snorkelling. Once the raffle was finished, Sofia headed over to Letty and led her over to the other side of the room.

"Letty, this is Owen Shaw, a cardiologist who is involved in the university. He gives lectures and is also there to give advice and what not. Owen, Letty Ortiz, an inspiring cardiologist."

"It's very nice to meet you, Letty," he said, offering his hand, his British accent as smooth as silk.

"Likewise," Letty replied, accepting his handshake.

"Do you have any questions for me?"

"What is your day to day life like?"

"It can be very early starts and extremely late finishes. You'll also be expected to work nights and weekends."

"I think I can deal with that. The early starts may need to be worked on but I'll manage."

Owen laughed. "Yes, I too found that the most challenging."

"Would all of this," Letty motioned towards her scars and the centre, "affect my chances of getting in?"

"No, but as you are here as a patient rather than a student you aren't getting the education that is required to get you accepted into a university, which is where I come in. Providing that Sofia clears you for the course and your parents approve, I will be tutoring you on one of your days off to get you up to the standard you should be at your age. Does everything I've said so far wound alright?"

"Yeah, I knew that I needed to get help outside the centre to get me there so you've pretty much said exactly what I wanted to hear."

"Brilliant."

"Yep, you've made good progress, Letty. I'd enjoy both of your days while you can," Sofia hinted. "Unless you have any more questions, you're free to enjoy the rest of the night."

"No and thank you, Owen and to you as well, Sofia."

* * *

Letty headed over to the bar where Neela was sitting by herself, nursing another non-alcoholic woo woo. When Letty turned up, she gave a small smile and hopped off her bar stool to drag Letty over. Sitting her down and asking TJ for another one for Letty, she looked enthusiastically at Letty to find out the details of her conversation with Sofia and Owen. On the other side of the room, they were discussing Letty.

"She seems very nice, very eager to learn," Owen said, watching Letty sit down with Neela.

"She is. She'd do well with you."

"So why are you stopping her?"

"Because I want her to realise that she needs to work for things, that she needs to make sacrifices to get what she really wants."

"You seem to have thought this out already."

"I have," Sofia agreed. "The only way she's going to screw this up is if she does something really stupid."

By the bar, Letty had filled Neela in on what had happened with Sofia and Owen. The idea that Owen was British already had Neela bouncing in her seat. "Is he like they say the British men are? Tall? Dark? Handsome?"

"I can't believe that's the first thing you think of." Letty shook her head in disbelief.

I'm sorry to disturb you ladies." Dom's baritone voice cut their conversation short and he smiled apologetically. "But I was wondering if I could ask Letty here for a dance. I happen to know what song is next."

"Of course you can," Neela chimed in before Letty could say anything. "Feel free – Letty I'm going over to see Poppy, see you in a bit."

"I guess we should go to the dance floor then."

Letty took Dom's hand and he led her out onto the floor, the sound of Ed Sheeran wafting through the speakers.

_When your legs don't work like they used to before_

_And I can't sweep you off of your feet_

_Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?_

_Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?_

"Are you enjoying the night?" Dom asked, bringing Letty closer into his chest.

"Yes. I met with Owen Shaw, the cardiologist from the uni, earlier. He seemed very nice."

"He is," Dom agreed. "I've met him a few times and he's always a good laugh."

"I hope so. I can't be dealing with people that are too wound up in their own business to take a minute to chill out and have a laugh."

"You have high expectations of people."

Letty shook her head quickly in disagreement. "I don't become friends with people straight away. I see what they're like first and then if I like them and they like me, we become friends. Simple."

_And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70_

_And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23_

_And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways_

_Maybe just the touch of a hand_

_Well, me –I fall in love with you every single day_

_And I just wanna tell you I am_

"Do you think we should tell people?" Gisele asked Han.

"About us?" Han questioned, slightly tightening his grip on Gisele's waist so that it was noticeable to her but no one else.

"Yeah. Maybe it's time for the truth to come out."

"I think keeping it to ourselves a little bit longer wouldn't hurt," Han said. Seeing the slight fall in Gisele's face, he gave her encouraging smile. "Just think, the less people that know the easier it will be. No questions, no one prying into our lives. But if you want to tell everyone that I'm your gorgeous new beau then I'm all up for that too."

"New beau? Please. I think you need glasses."

_So honey now_

_Take me into your loving arms_

_Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

_Place your head on my beating heart_

_I'm thinking out loud_

_That maybe we found love right where we are_

"Will you please stop treading on my toes," Dom whispered into Letty's ear. It was the third time she had done it in the space of thirty seconds.

"I'm ever so sorry," Letty replied sarcastically. "I'm not really the dancing type."

"I wish you'd have told me that before. I'll be walking round with bruised toes for days."

"God, you moan a lot."

"Me?" Dom questioned, stopping their slow, swaying movements to give her a shocked look. "Me? And this is coming from you?"

"Yes, it's coming from me. Do you see anyone else talking to you?"

"You are impossible. Always got an answer for everything."

Letty smiled. "I got that from my mum, blame her, not me."

"I'll bring it up when I come to dinner next."

"Asshole."

_When my hair's all but gone and my memory fades_

_And the crowds don't remember my name_

_When my hands don't play the strings the same way_

_I know you will still love me the same_

"Hi," Mia said as she came behind Brian, testing the waters by placing a light hand to the base of his back.

"Hello, you look gorgeous," Roman commented, giving Mia a small kiss on the cheek.

"I agree," Brian said, greeting her in the same way.

"Thank you. Brian, I was wondering if I could have a quick word with you."

"Yeah, that sounds good. Can you just give us five minutes? Rome here has a few problems in the relationship area."

Rome gave his best convincing smile. "Sorry."

"No worries. I'll be around whenever you're ready," Mia said, turning to walk away.

"Thanks."

"Problems in the relationship area? Seriously?"

"I needed to think of something," Brian argued, watching Mia's retreating figure.

"I can't believe you."

'_Cause honey your soul could never grow old, it's evergreen _

_And, baby, your smile's forever in my mind and memory_

_I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways_

_Maybe it's all part of a plan_

_Well, I'll just keep on making the same mistakes_

_Hoping that you'll understand_

"Have I told you that you look beautiful?" Dom asked. At this point, Letty had her head rested on his broad chest and his arms were circling her small frame.

"I don't think so," Letty said, blushing into his chest. "But thank you."

"You're welcome."

"You look," Letty paused. "Average."

"Average? Did you just describe me as average?"

"Yes. All of you men look the same, black suits, black shoes, white shirts. I'll give you extra credit for wearing a tie when everyone else is wearing a bowtie."

"That's it?" Dom said. "I'm glad you like my tie. My mum nearly had a fit when I didn't wear my bowtie. Now I'll just tell her that I was being individual."

"Somehow I don't think that's going to swing with her."

"I'll give it a go anyway."

_But, baby, now_

_Take me into your loving arms_

_Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

_Place your head on my beating heart_

_Thinking out loud_

_That maybe we found love right where we are_

"So what's happening between you and your mystery man?" Elena asked Riley.

"Not much. As you know we were talking quite a bit in the beginning but it's died down a bit since then," the East Wing counsellor said.

"I'm sure that's quite natural," Elena assured.

"I hope so. We get on so well so I'd like it to progress into something more."

"Luke is a charmer."

"He is."

_So, baby, now_

_Take me into your loving arms_

_Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

_Oh, darling, place your head on my beating heart_

_I'm thinking out loud_

_That maybe we found love right where we are_

_Oh, baby, we found love right where we are_

_And we found love right where we are_

"Urgh," Letty moaned into Dom's chest. Her head was starting to spin a little and her stomach was doing somersaults.

"Are you alright?" Dom asked. The song had finished and people were slowly leaving the dance floor as a more energetic song filled the room.

"I think I feel sick."

"Let's get you sitting down then," Dom said, leading her over to an empty part of the ballroom. "Don't take offense to this but you smell very heavily of alcohol."

"I haven't been drinking, I swear. I've been on non alcoholic cocktails all night. Ask Neela."

"How many have you had?"

"About four."

"Okay. Just sit there and I'll get you some water."

* * *

"Are you alright to talk now?" Brian asked Mia, coming up behind her.

"Yep. I was thinking we could talk outside, it's quieter and it's starting to get hot in here."

"Give me two minutes? The cold always makes me need the bathroom."

"Yeah, I'll meet you out there."

Brian smiled at Mia and walked off. The cold didn't make him need the loo, he was nervous. He wanted to breach the topic of what had happened to Mia but he knew that after last time he had tried it wouldn't be easy. Yet, he had a feeling that Mia would bring up the conversation herself.

Over the other side of the hall, Mia walked up to Tony. "I'm going to take a few minutes outside. Get some fresh air."

"That sounds like a good idea, it's getting stuffy in here. Do you want me to join you?"

"No, it's alright," Mia reassured. "I'm actually going to have a chat with Brian."

"Okay, if you need me just shout."

"I will do, thanks, dad."

Kissing him on the cheek, Mia headed outside and waited for Brian. Seconds later, she turned as she heard the door close and Brian came outside, rubbing his hands together as his skin reacted to the sudden drop in temperature.

"How are you?" He asked.

"I'm good, how are you?"

"I'm doing well. Your mum and dad have put on a great party here. It's wonderful."

"It is," Mia agreed.

"And I still can't believe that Dom won the getaway to New York, I was so disappointed."

"Yeah, so was I. I feel like you're putting the inevitable conversation off with small talk."

Brian sighed. "I tried to. I feel like having this conversation is either going to make or break us and I really want us to work."

"So do I. But we need to have this conversation. I'm sorry for shouting at you in the cafe. I understand it did nothing for your man pride-"

"-Mia, I don't care about man pride-"

"-But I should never have spoken to you in the way I did and for that I'm sorry. Also, I understand that you are curious to know what me and my mum were talking about and I'm sure you will find out soon but it's something that I've kept close to my chest and never told anyone apart from my family and they only know because they built me back up again when I fell down. I want to trust you with this but you need to understand my difficulty."

"I understand. There are a lot of things you should probably a lot of things you should know about me as well but we can always learn more about each other over time, yeah?"

"Definitely. I'm glad you understood."

Mia pulled Brian in for a hug and rested her head on his chest. His arms came up to circle around her and they stayed in that embrace for a few minutes. The pair were broken when a loud cough from Tony broke them apart.

"I'm sorry to spoil this moment but we need you inside, Mia. It seems Letty is ill and we wondered if you could help her to her room."

"Of course, give me a sec."

Mia looked apologetically at Brian. "I'm so sorry."

"It's fine. It's one of the reasons I like you. The fact that you're so giving towards others."

"I try."

Inside the hall, Sofia had managed to move Letty into a side room and away from prying eyes. Neela had followed the pair and was sitting beside Letty, holding a sick bowl out for her. Rubbing her hand across her forehead, Sofia started mumbling to herself. 'Of all the days, why today? One of the biggest moments of the centre's history. Typical.'

"Mum? Can I have a word please?" Dom stood at the door and looked at Letty with pity. The poor girl looked as if she had covered in Dulux white paint. Sofia and Dom left the room and Dom waited until they were far enough away for their conversation to remain private before speaking. "I think I might know why Letty is ill."

"Why?"

"I think she's been drinking."

Sofia snorted. "No way, absolutely no way. One, she knows what would happen if she drunk and I could not see her doing that to herself. Two, she's underage and it's very clear to see that. Three, she isn't wearing a blue wristband. There is no way she has been drinking. She wouldn't get away with it anyway."

"I think she has been, she smelt like it earlier."

"I can't believe this." Sofia entered the room and headed straight over to Letty. Leaning her head down, she sniffed her and pulled her head back, disappointment evident in her eyes. "You've been drinking."

"Me?" Letty said shocked. Her voice was rough from gagging and her energy levels had dropped drastically. "I haven't touched a drop all night. I've had non alcoholic woo woos. Neela and the bar staff can back me up on that."

"Non alcoholic, yeah right. You have just messed up every opportunity that you ever had of being involved with Owen and the university. Neela, if you'll please take Letty back to her room and get her sorted for the night, I can't even bare looking at you right now. You've disappointed me, Tony and yourself. I'll talk to you in the morning."

Neela pulled Letty up from her seat and took her out of the room. Once they had gone, Sofia slammed her hand down on the table in frustration. She really thought that Letty would surprise her but she was obviously wrong. Knocking on the door, Dom popped his head round before going to Sofia and pulling her into a hug.

"I'm so disappointed in myself, Dom. I really thought I could change her into a better person."

"Some people just can't be helped. They want things to go their way and that's the way they'll go. You gave it your best shot."

"Well, my best just wasn't good enough, was it?"

* * *

The song is Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran.

**R&amp;R**

**R&amp;R**


	9. Chapter 9

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

Thank you sooo much for your reviews. Now it's time for Letty to face the music, enjoy!

* * *

_Sunday 21__st__ September 2014 (continued)_

"Oh my God, is this ever going to end?" Letty said, resting her head on the outside rim of the toilet seat.

"In a few days, it will all be over," Neela assured her, rubbing her back comfortingly and sweeping a few stray strands of hair from her face.

"Can you undo my hair? It's starting to ache my head and my life is so depressing."

"Ache your head? Nobody but a drunk person comes up with something like that. I think you need to go to sleep."

"You think I need to? I know I need to but I can't stop being sick," Letty replied, leaning over the toilet again to gag.

Neela started to thread her fingers through Letty's hair and pull out the Kirby grips. Chucking them onto the side, she unravelled Letty's bun and picked up the hairbrush.

"I think I'm finished now," Letty commented, going to stand up.

Neela grabbed Letty underneath her arms and helped her. It had seemed that since she had started walking, the alcohol had sunk in and she couldn't stand upright unattended. Neela herself suspected that Letty's drink had been alcoholic and didn't taste it because the non alcoholic drinks were meant to taste like the originals. It was an easy mistake for a bartender to make when they were dealing with so many people.

"Okay, where are your pyjamas?"

"On my bed, or under my bed, or something relating to my bed. They just live wherever."

"So helpful," Neela mumbled under her breath. Flushing the chain and the closing the lid, Neela sat Letty down on the toilet before going into her bedroom to find her clothes. Throwing back the bedcovers, Neela looked before ducking down to search under the bed. Sticking her hand under, she grabbed onto a piece of cloth and pulled it out. Seeing a crumpled up pair of shorts and a vest top, she carried them into the bathroom.

"Stand up and turn around," she told Letty. Letty complied. "Are you capable of getting dressed while I grab a glass of water for you from the main area?"

"Yeah, you make it sound like I can't walk in a straight line and I have no sense of direction."

"Letty, do you not remember that less than half an hour ago, you walked into a door and then tripped over an invisible dwarf as you put it?"

Letty pulled a face. "Just go and get me some water. I'll get changed and tuck myself into bed while you do that."

Neela looked at Letty suspiciously before turning on her heel and walking out. As she headed towards the water fountain, Sofia came jogging down the corridor. "Neela, Neela. Wait up a minute."

"Hi, Sofia. Has everything calmed down now?" Neela asked, grabbing a cup from the dispenser and holding it for the time being.

"I think so. I don't think many people saw what happened but I know I have to sort all this out."

"I don't think she drank on purpose. I can see how one of the bartenders could have given her an alcoholic drink, you know. The amount of people and the lighting was a bit dark. I don't think you can concretely say that Letty put herself in this situation."

"I'd like to hope so. She tried so hard to control her behaviour," Sofia agreed. "I'll have a word with the staff in the morning and see. Just get Letty into bed with a bit of water and we can hopefully clear this whole situation up in the morning. You're more than welcome to come back to the party once she's settled."

"Alright, thank you. I'll probably see you in a bit."

Sofia smiled at Neela before leaving the West Wing and going back to the ballroom. Neela walked back to Letty's room and found her tucked up in bed, covers to her chin and her eyes wide open like a child suffering from nightmares. Giving her the cup, Letty took long gulps before sighing and placing it on her bedside table.

"Are you alright here?" Neela asked, perching on the end of Letty's bed as the brunette snuggled into her covers.

"Yeah, I'll see you in the morning."

"Alright, I'll check on you when I come back. Sleep tight."

Neela got up and quietly closed the door behind. Readjusting her hair and sliding on her heels, she walked off towards the ballroom. Inside the ballroom, the party was in full swing. Tej was owning the decks and the dance floor was filling up as the night went on. Grabbing herself a drink at the bar, Neela waltzed over to the West C table and started up a conversation as if nothing had ever happened.

On the other side of the room, Mia puller her mother aside and pulled her into a hug. Relaxing into her daughter's embrace, Sofia took a deep breath before pulling away.

"Well if you wanted entertainment, you sure provided it," Mia said guiding Sofia to a couple of spare seats.

"Yeah but I didn't want that kind of entertainment. I feel like everything has been a disaster," Sofia replied, an edge of disappointment in her voice.

"No it hasn't," Mia exclaimed. "It's been amazing. We've raised loads of money and everyone is having a good time. I don't think that many people even noticed it anyway because Dom sat her down and let her have some time. It's not like she was sick all over the dance floor."

"True."

"How is she doing?" Mia asked in regards to Letty.

"Neela put her to bed not long ago with a glass of water. She'll probably feel quite bad in the morning but she's adamant that she didn't touch a drop of alcohol willingly. Neela said that they were on non alcoholic drinks all night but she could just be covering for Letty. I really don't know what to believe."

"In my opinion," Mia started. "I don't think Letty would risk so much for the sake of having a bit of alcohol. She doesn't seem the type. And there's nothing on her file that says anything about alcohol abuse or anything like that. Have a word with the bar staff tomorrow and see. It might all just be a big misunderstanding."

"I really hope so," Sofia sighed.

* * *

_Monday 22__nd__ September 2014_

It was seven thirty in the morning when Gisele started pounding on Letty's door. The Israeli woman had been instructed by Sofia to give Letty an emergency session before she started her sessions with West A. Pounding again on the door, Gisele was interrupted by Letty opening the door and glaring intensely at the Israeli woman.

"What do you want?" Letty asked aggressively. Her arms were crossed over her chest and her hair was rumpled.

"You and I need to have a session."

"Why? Last time I checked it was Monday not Wednesday."

"I am aware of that but I think we need to have a little chat about last night. Wednesday's session will resume what we were talking about last time so we need to talk about the ball while we can."

"And you want to do this at seven o' clock in the morning?"

Gisele sighed. "Your session will start at eight. I hope to see you there."

Gisele turned around and walked down the corridor, leaving Letty standing there with her arms across her chest and a scowl on her face. As Gisele walked down the corridor, a smirk came across her face, Letty would be there.

"I see you made it," Gisele remarked half an hour later as Letty took a seat at Gisele's desk. The younger girl was dressed simply and her wet hair was dripping down her back. She was still obviously annoyed at being woken up so early. "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit."

"I guessed that. Shall we go through the evening step by step and see what you remember?"

"If we have to."

"Okay, try not to sound to enthusiastic," Gisele joked. She received a glare for her comedy. "Let's start from the beginning shall we?"

"Me and Neela got ready then we went down for the photos and Sofia's assembly. Me and Neela grabbed a drink then the fundraiser started and then I had a dance with Dom and that's when I started feeling sick."

"How many drinks did you have?"

"I think around four. I didn't knock them back, just took my time and drank them normally and just got one after I finished. Even then I waited a while."

"So in your eyes you drank responsibly?"

"Yes. I don't know how many times I need to tell people that I didn't do anything on purpose."

"Alright, alright." Gisele softened her voice as she used her hands as an indication for Letty to calm down. In her own mind she couldn't see Letty doing something so reckless but then again, she was a teenage girl. "You seem pretty passionate about that."

"My dad was an alcoholic. He treated my mum pretty badly and then left. I know what alcohol does to you and I've been there to witness firsthand what it does to others. I wasn't going to myself or anyone else in that situation."

"I see. Have you explained any of this to Sofia?"

"When have I had the time? I was either being shouted at, being sick or being woken up at half seven to come here." Letty raised her voice slightly. Her dad was a touchy subject and she hated talking about him. "Can I go now?" Letty asked; her hands already on the arms of the chair as if she was ready to move.

"Yes. I'll see you on Wednesday."

Letty left the room hurriedly and Gisele sighed. The session could have gone much better in Gisele's mind but they still had Wednesday to figure some of the other stuff out. Grabbing her notes, Gisele left her office, locking it behind her, and headed towards Sofia's office to give her an update.

"How did it go?" Sofia asked, ushering Gisele inside and offering her a seat.

"Not bad. She seemed annoyed that I woke her up early."

Sofia laughed. "Mia was exactly the same. Apart from that?"

"I don't think she did it. She talked to me about her dad and about how he turned into someone completely different when he was drinking. I think she's too emotionally damaged to even want to think about putting someone else through that, even her worst enemy."

"I'll take that into consideration. I've got a meeting with the bar staff later so I'll make some enquiries. Thanks, Gisele."

"I'll see you later."

At the Toretto household, Dom and Tony were enjoying a rare day off together and had used the time to shoot some hoops in an old net in the back garden. For September the temperatures were doing pretty well, the summer looking like it was going to carry on well into autumn.

"I'm so gonna kick your ass," Tony baited, dribbling the ball down the court.

Blocking him, Dom took the ball, ran round to the other side of the court, and shot in a three pointer. "Your small talk ain't gonna distract me. I've got mad skills."

"Mad skills? Oh dear, and I thought I'd raised you properly. You've been hanging around with Matt too much. Mad skills my ass."

"Oh shut up, old man."

"Hey! How are you calling old?"

"Nobody," Dom said, preparing to take another three pointer from the edge of the D. Truth be told his dad's tactics had nearly caught him out.

"Didn't think so. So I saw you sharing a dance with a lovely lady last night," Tony commented, the pair going over to the bench to sit down.

"We had a dance, that's all."

"With Letty. Our resident drunk," Tony teased, seeing how Dom would react.

"She's not a drunk." Dom quickly leapt to Letty's defence. "She didn't do anything wrong. She was fine when we were dancing and then as soon as we finished she started feeling sick."

Tony stayed silent and took a long gulp from his water bottle. It seemed as if his son was developing an affection for Letty, shown through his defence of her and their weekly training sessions. He could have chosen anyone to be involved in his training programme, yet he chose a teenager who had been admitted to a rehabilitation centre for self-harm whose behaviour was sometimes unpredictable.

"I know what you're thinking, dad. She's too young and she's vulnerable. I've had this all from Roman before and I certainly don't need it again."

"What was Roman doing?" Tony asked, his protective dad instincts kicking in.

"Just telling me to watch out for what I was doing. Things could end up getting messy, I know that."

"Just watch out, I don't need no parents knocking on my door. I had enough of that through your earlier teenage years."

* * *

_Wednesday 24__th__ September 2014_

"I have seen this room far too many times this week already," Letty remarked, taking a seat for the second time in three days in Gisele's office.

"Letty, this is the second time," Gisele said without turning around, grabbing her file from the cabinet before slamming the door shut and taking a seat.

"It's still once more than usual. And I really don't feel like it today."

"Well to make to easier, I'll just start by asking some questions and you can either nod or shake your head, that's it."

Letty raised her eyebrows. She wasn't expecting Gisele to be so relaxed. Nodding her head in agreement, she waited as Gisele jotted down some quick questions and leant back in her chair.

"So, Letty. Are you feeling better now?"

Letty nodded.

"Did you have a nice day off yesterday?"

Letty nodded again.

"The canteen food improved?"

Letty squinted her eyes and semi-glared at Gisele. "Are the questions going to carry on like this?"

"No, but you've done exactly what I wanted you to do."

"What do you mean?" Letty asked. As far as she knew all she had done was nod her head like a dog.

"You realised that when you were saying nothing back, I had nothing interesting to say. I'm not here as your friend or your mum, I am here to talk to you and listen to you so you can overcome this. If you don't talk back to me, there's no point in you coming here. You can try and say that's fine and you'll leave happily but you are enjoying the benefits of not having so much weight on your shoulders."

"I'm not much of a talker," Letty pointed out now seeing what Gisele was getting out. "It's not really one of my strong points."

"We can work on that, we can get to a point where you feel confident talking about your feelings."

"Maybe someday."

"Maybe. Now, how do you think your mum is going to take this whole situation?" Gisele asked.

"She's going to go mental. After everything with my dad, she's going to flip. I won't be able to get a word in edgeways for at least ten minutes."

"Has she ever been restrictive about you drinking before?"

"Not really. She goes with the theory that if I'm allowed to drink moderately when I'm younger, I'll go less crazy when I can legally drink."

"I agree with her. A lot of teenagers that aren't allowed to drink and are restricted completely from drinking before twenty-one seem to go full out. It seems like a massive milestone and they feel the need to celebrate by getting completely hammered. The novelty of drinking wears off after a while," Gisele agreed. She had gone through the same process when she was younger.

"But I feel like I've disappointed her once again and even though I know that I haven't done anything, she won't see it that way."

"I'm sure if you explain to her exactly what happened like you did to me on Monday, you'll get through it."

"I really hope so."

After her session with Gisele ended, Letty went back to her room to take a shower and wait for Neela's session to end. She was putting her hair into a ponytail when Neela knocked on the door, giving a shrug that symbolised 'same as always' when Letty asked her how her session went. Taking a seat, Neela relaxed into Letty's bed and pulled the covers over her legs.

"She annoys me sometimes," Neela started.

"Who?" Letty asked, not taking her eyes off the mirror as she finished her ponytail.

"Gisele. She always feels the need to bring up some kind of shit that just needs to be buried in the past and covered in soil and never, ever in the history of the entire world needs to be exhumed."

"She did that with me this morning as well. Went on about how I need to talk to her and that if I don't I shouldn't bother coming. Then she went on about how whenever I talk to her a weight is lifted off my shoulders. I think she needs to be the one in here sometimes."

"Exactly," Neela agreed. "Did she say anything more about Sunday or did she cover all that in your early morning session on Monday?"

"She brought it up...again. We talked about my mum a bit. I just want to know what happened so that when my mum comes storming in and decides to bite my head off, I have something to tell her."

"Could you imagine what would happen if someone had set you up? Like someone had told the bar staff to spike your drinks. Imagine the scandal. That would be worthy of something on CBS."

"I would kick their ass if they did that. But who have I managed to piss off that much?" Letty asked.

"Amelia?"

"Could you imagine if it was her?"

"I might be able to help with that," a timid voice from the door called. Kaelyn Garrett was the newest member of the centre and had joined only days before the ball. She was small and the volume of her voice matched that. Put in West B, she kept mostly to herself and was often seen with her head in a sketchbook.

"Help in what way?" Letty asked, inviting her into the room with a beckon of her hand.

"I overheard Amelia and another boy talking about how a bit of alcohol would make the evening interesting and about how she wanted to ruin your chances with something to do with a deal you have with Sofia."

"That little bitch," Letty remarked. "Kaelyn, how do you feel about reciting all of that to Sofia? You don't have to if you don't want to, I don't want to pressure you into something-"

"-Honestly, I don't mind. I don't like her anyway, she is horrible to everyone anyway. I don't think there's anyone that would want her to stay."

"Let's go then."

In Sofia's office, the older woman was sitting at her desk with her arms folded over one another as Kaelyn explained what she had just told Letty and Neela. Speaking with confidence, every word convinced Sofia that Amelia was behind it, and that Letty was innocent all along.

"Letty, who served you that night?" Sofia asked.

"I think I heard that his name was TJ but I'm not sure."

"That sounds about right," Kaelyn interjected. "They said about getting TJ in on it."

"Thank you, Kaelyn. You've been very helpful. Girls, take a seat." Once Kaelyn had left, Sofia continued. "Now I have heard Kaelyn's side of the story, I need to know if you are willing to an accusation against Amelia. But I want to say to you now that if you do, it could turn out to be very messy."

"I understand that but I'm not letting her get away with it. If she's done this, she's going to pay for what she's done. As well as whomever she was talking to. They had a part in this too."

"You're sure?"

"Absolutely."

* * *

_Thursday 25__th__ September 2014_

Lena quickly stopped her car before grabbing her bag and sliding out of the car, slamming the door shut behind her. She had just listened to the voicemail on her house phone from the centre about Letty being involved in some drunken behaviour. Her phone had been snatched on a recent trip outside of town and she had only just got back. She had listened to it the day before but had decided to sleep on it so she didn't get the wrong end of the stick. But she woke up feeling the same way and had jumped in the car as soon as she had the chance.

"I'd like to speak with my daughter," Lena shouted as she stormed into reception. Her bag was swinging furiously from her arm and her eyes were in narrow slits.

"If you'd like to calm down for a second please. Who is your daughter?"

"Leticia Ortiz, West C."

"Okay, hold on a second." Marcia typed for a second before a regretful look crossed her face. "I'm sorry but she is currently in a lesson, if you'd like to wait fifteen minutes until it finishes and then we can go from there."

"Well, I'm sorry but I don't think you're listening to the seriousness of my voice. I want to see my daughter now. And if she is not brought to me in the next five minutes I will go in there myself and get her. Do you understand?"

"Okay, I'll give Sofia a ring and see if she is available to come and talk to you."

"Do it quickly," Lena snapped.

Marcia picked up the phone and dialled Sofia. "I'm sorry to disturb you Sofia but a Ms Ortiz is here. She is requesting to speak to her daughter but Letty is in lessons at the moment, I wondered if you would be available to talk to her. Yeah? Brilliant, I'll see you in a couple of minutes."

"Is she coming?"

"Yes."

Sofia came around the corner moments later and redirected Lena to her office. She could already tell from Lena's hard face and if she were to breathe a little harder, Sofia could almost swear that smoke would come out her nose.

"This is an unexpected visit, Lena. Do what do we owe the pleasure?"

"I was out of town earlier this week and my phone was taken by a stranger. I was unable to contact the centre to inform you but I figured that gathering you are a top class centre, I would have no problems and no need to speak to you. That was until I came home yesterday to find a voicemail from your receptionist telling me that Letty had been involved with alcohol and had to be taken out of the ball. I would like to know what happened."

Marcia knocked on the door. "I've got Letty for you." The younger girl ducked her head and avoided her mother's eyes as she shuffled into the room and sat down on the chair next to Lena.

"You and I will be having words after this," Lena whispered to Letty.

"Lena, while I am sure that you are angry about how the situation has been presented to you, it does not give you the authority to come in here, a place of rehabilitation, and disrupt Letty's lessons."

"Oh no, don't start with me. For someone that allowed my seventeen year old daughter to drink so much that she was sick repeatedly, I don't think you have much room to talk."

"Okay, okay. I see your point and I am sorry that it ended up the way it did. I take full responsibility for that. But you have to understand that I cannot keep an eye on fifty patients while interacting with the rest of the guests."

"I should think so," Lena said, ignoring the last part of Sofia's small speech.

"Mum," Letty hissed.

"Letty, I am not very happy with you. What on earth were you thinking? Has your childhood not taught you enough about drinking?"

"Don't you dare bring that up. You have no right. I did nothing wrong, I didn't ask for alcohol in any shape or form that night."

"Then how do you explain your drunken antics? Or were you just showing off to your friends? Trying to make yourself look big in front of them?"

"Of course not." Letty raised her voice. "You really don't have any faith in me do you?"

"It has nothing to do with how much faith I have in you. I am dealing with the facts here. I had faith in your father and we all know how that turned out, don't we?"

"That's not fair, mum, and you know it. That was nothing to do with me."

"Look," Sofia started, gaining both of the Ortiz woman's attentions. "We believe that another girl in the centre who has a grudge against Letty arranged a deal of some sort with one of the bar staff to give Letty alcohol. At this present moment, we haven't spoken to her about it so I'd appreciate it if you kept it quiet until we have the chance."

"I'll keep quiet but I want this sorted. If Letty was set up I want to know as soon as possible. I'll leave my new number with your receptionist. Letty, we'll talk about this in private when we're next both available."

"Okay."

"I'll see you later." Lena leaned over to give Letty a kiss on the cheek before leaving the room. Letty gave a sigh as Sofia gave her warm smile.

"It'll be alright," Sofia assured.

After giving her number to reception, Lena headed home. She had three hours until she was due at work so she thought she would get some housework done. While Letty wasn't there, the work load was considerably less and she was free to blast her 80's music as loud as she wanted to. Pulling out of the car park, her fingers were tapping along to the radio and her head was banging slightly.

"I hate all people sometimes," Lena said as some pedestrians crossed the road after the green man had turned back to red. "Why do they have to do that?"

Feeling a sudden hunger in her stomach, Lena pulled over to a corner shop to get some chocolate. Paying for it and grabbing a magazine to read later, she left the shop. However, pulling out into the road, a car pulled in front of her and she slammed on the breaks.

"Asshole!" Sighing to herself, Lena calmed herself and got over the shock before driving home. Pulling in her drive, she was waved over to her neighbour's house by the old man that lived there.

"Ah, Lena. Did you have a good time away?" He asked, sitting her down before flicking on the kettle.

"It was rather good considering it was work. How have things been back here?"

"Not bad. I actually have a parcel for you that came the other day. I signed it for you, I hope you don't mind."

"No, no, no. That's brilliant. Thank you. You've saved me a trip into town."

The old man smiled. "I'm glad I've helped you. Would you like a cup of coffee?"

"Actually, if you don't mind I better not. I've got the cleaning to do and then I'm back off to work but I'll definitely come round at some point in the next week."

"Okay, let me get that parcel for you."

Lena left the house with the parcel under her arm. Unlocking her door, she dropped the parcel on the table before going into the kitchen and grabbing a pair of scissors. Ripping open the packaging, Lena gasped, a hand coming to her mouth. It was a picture of her and Carlos, on their wedding day. A chuckle from behind the hallway curtains caught her attention.

"Carlos," she whispered.

"Hello, Lena," her estranged husband greeted.

* * *

**R&amp;R **


	10. Chapter 10

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Dotty. Multi-chap.

Thank you for your reviews. I don't have a chapter for Dotty FM this time I'm afraid. I've started it but it's not finished yet so you'll get it with Chapter Eleven. Enjoy :)

* * *

_Previously_

_Unlocking her door, she dropped the parcel on the table before going into the kitchen and grabbing a pair of scissors. Ripping open the packaging, Lena gasped, a hand coming to her mouth. It was a picture of her and Carlos, on their wedding day. A chuckle form behind the hallway curtains caught her attention._

"_Carlos," she whispered._

"_Hello, Lena," her estranged husband greeted._

* * *

_Thursday 25__th__ September 2014_

"What are you doing here," Lena asked, edging slightly backwards as she tightened her grip on the scissors.

"My sweet, Lena," Carlos drawled. "You don't need to be scared, I'm not here to hurt you."

"Then why are you here? I haven't heard from you for years."

"I didn't come back for you, I came back for my daughter. So that I can take her away from all this and to somewhere safe. She doesn't want to be there, she's not that kind of girl."

"Your daughter? Your daughter?" Lena repeated. She stepped forward, the scissors becoming her defence as she got closer to him. "You are not her father, you abandoned her. You abandoned both of us. And how do you know what kind of girl she is? You haven't seen her in twelve years; you're not allowed an opinion."

"I want to see my daughter, I don't care what it takes. I want to see her and I want to talk to her."

"It's not happening Carlos, no way."

Lena stood with her face directly in front of Carlos'. With every word she had slowly inched forward, still holding the scissors in a firm grip as she made her journey. Despite being dwarfed by Carlos, she stood her ground and maintained eye contact while he grumbled under her breath.

"Just go home, Carlos," Lena said, breaking the silence that had come with the start of their staring competition.

"No, not until I see Letty."

"You're not seeing her, end of."

Carlos chuckled lightly, he should have seen Lena's resistance coming. "You always were making it difficult for me."

"Me? Think about how difficult it was for me to be left on my own, think about how difficult it was for me to tell our five year old daughter that I didn't know where her daddy was."

_2002_

"_Mama?" Letty called, running into the kitchen. Lena sighed at her daughter's muddy trousers and her French plait had been pulled apart._

"_Yes, sweetie?"_

"_Where's daddy?"_

"_I don't know darling. Is he under the table?" Lena pulled the cloth up and looked. Shaking her head, she looked at Letty. "No, what about under the stairs, do you want to have a look?"_

_Truth be told, Lena didn't know where her husband was. She had heard him get up in the early hours of morning but just assumed he was going to the toilet so she went back to sleep. In the morning when he wasn't there, she had started to worry. It wasn't like him to leave the house before Lena had dropped Letty off at school and gone to work. Concerned, she had called him several times but he never answered._

"_He's not there," Letty replied, running back towards Lena. "Where has he gone?"_

"_Maybe he's gone out with his friends for a bit."_

"_Without me?" Letty said, her face dropping at the thought of her daddy leaving her. _

"_Yeah, sorry, baby." Lena was more than worried now. It would be an understatement to say Carlos had a mild drinking problem but after a few bouts of uncontrollable behaviour, Lena had called on him to get his act together and he had. He had stopped hanging around with certain people and he was making an effort to spend more time with his family. But there was always a chance of a relapse and that was exactly what Lena feared._

"_Come on, it's time for bed," Lena had called a few hours later. She had pushed Carlos to the back of her mind and focussed on Letty, feeding her and getting her ready for bed. She was now snuggled up on the sofa with a teddy watching cartoons._

"_I can't go to bed now. I have to wait for daddy. I need my bedtime kiss."_

"_Daddy isn't here at the moment, maybe tomorrow," Lena suggested._

"_No. I want it now."_

"_I'm not going to argue with you. Bed."_

"_You can't make me."_

_Lena raised her eyebrows. Where had she heard that from? "Leticia, you've got five seconds. One...Two...Three...Four..."_

"_I want my daddy."_

"_You can't have him. He's not here."_

_Letty's bottom lip started to quiver. Tears formed in her eyes and Lena quickly rushed forward to comfort her. "I want my daddy," Letty repeated again._

"_I know, sweetie, I know. I want him too."_

_Thursday 25__th__ September 2014 (Continued)_

"You wanted me to change, I wasn't prepared to make that sacrifice," Carlos defended, putting some space between Lena and himself as he paced the living room.

"I wanted you to make an effort for our daughter. She was five, clueless, wanted her daddy. How could you do that to her?"

"You wanted me to change," Carlos roared, beginning to get angry. "I was happy with who I was and you just couldn't wait to ruin that. You brought this all on yourself."

"Don't turn this on me. Oh wait, you always do. You could never take responsibility for what you did. Anything, everything, always my fault. Come to think of it I was better off without you anyway." By now, Lena was shouting at the same volume as Carlos. Her arms were shaking with anger and her eyes were throwing daggers in Carlos' direction.

"I will be seeing Letty soon and you can't stop." Carlos lowered his voice again and headed towards the door. "I'll be applying for custody as well for when she gets out."

"How do you plan on doing that?" Lena asked; wonderstruck. "You don't even know when she's getting out."

"I'll find out soon enough. I have more than a few people willing to help me."

"It's not happening and I will do everything in my power to stop you from even coming within a mile of her."

"You do make me laugh, Lena. Thinking you're all strong and powerful, untouchable. When really all I need to do is give you a little push and you're over like a little girl in a playground."

"Well this little girl is a lot stronger than you remember and if even you do manage to push her down, she'll get right back up again."

"We'll see about that."

"I guess we will."

Carlos gave Lena one last glare before turning and walking out of the house. He slammed the door behind him and Lena finally relaxed onto the sofa, her head in her hands.

"Son of a bitch."

* * *

_Friday 26__th__ September 2014_

News of Amelia's involvement in Letty's antics at the ball had spread fast after Kaelyn's statement to Sofia. While they had promised to keep the information quiet, someone had overheard Sofia talking to Suki about it and now everybody knew. Not knowing the whole story, several rumours had been created; some saying how Amelia had spiked Letty's food while others were saying that someone else had dropped powder into Letty's drink. From the rumours Letty had heard, none of them were any closer to getting the truth, despite the fact everyone else was clubbing together and swapping information.

"I'm glad I can breathe a new air of excitement into the centre," Letty commented. It was lunchtime and Neela, Kaelyn and Letty were sitting around their usual table.

"You've certainly giving them a talking point," Kaelyn agreed. Letty and Neela had welcomed her to their table and she was proving to be quite a character.

"I wonder what's going to happen to her," Neela inputted. "She can't possibly come off with nothing but a warning. I've got my fingers crossed that she'll be out of here soon."

"Maybe. But this is here to help people and give people a second chance."

"She's had more than her fair share of seconds chances. She must be on at least eleven."

"If she's not gone in the next week there's definitely some favouritism going around. I heard that her parents are loaded."

"I heard that one too," Letty agreed. "Apparently they've invested in a lot of stocks and shares over the years."

"I wouldn't be surprised if they're paying extra for her to be here." Kaelyn and Letty both nodded in agreement. As the bell went, they both left to go to lessons while Kaelyn headed back to the West Wing. She had had her therapy session with Gisele that morning and now had the rest of the day off to study or revise. Of course that never happened but nobody needed to know.

Kaelyn was Los Angeles born and raised and had come into self-harming aged just thirteen. Her parents had split up when she was ten and after her mother's spiral into depression, she had been forced to look after her younger brother and sister. Aged twelve, her grandmother had took her and her siblings while her mother was hospitalised and while she maintained regular contact with her dad, she experienced some dark times and was led into the world of self-harm.

"See you later." Neela and Letty both waved to Kaelyn as she walked off in the other direction.

In her office, Sofia was gathering everything she needed to know before making an official accusation against Amelia. She was happy with Kaelyn's statement but it wouldn't be enough to secure a win if it went to court. She had arranged a meeting with all the bar staff individually and she was expecting TJ, the one Kaelyn had mentioned, next.

"Mrs Toretto, it's nice to see you again," TJ greeted, taking a seat.

"Nice to see you too. Tea? Coffee?"

"No thank you. I'm not really a hot drinks kind of person. I prefer a cold beer."

"My son is the same." Sofia smiled, pulling out a picture of Letty. "As you may have heard, there were some issues at the ball and I'm talking to each of your colleagues individually. Did have any contact with Letty Ortiz that night?"

"Yes. I served her quite a few times actually. Non-alcoholic woo woos, the girl and her friend have good taste."

"They do. But this is where our problem lies, we believe that Letty became ill after drinking an excess of alcohol. Now, if your story is how you say it is, it does not put you in a good position. Would you like to add anything? Such as who asked you to do it?"

"I think I'm missing something here. You think that firstly, I spiked Letty's drink in order to get her drunk and secondly that someone paid me to do it?"

"So someone did ask you to do it?"

"Where have you got that from?"

"You just asked me if someone _paid_ you to do it. I asked if someone asked you. So who was it?"

"That's just how it came out," TJ defended. "I didn't actually mean it like that."

"But it still came out the same. So I'll ask again, who asked, or paid, you to spike Letty's drink?"

"I admit to spiking Letty's drink, I admit to adding alcohol to her cocktail. But I am not telling you who asked me to. That goes against everything."

"Goes against everything in the 'bro code' or against everything that your job provides you with? Like your house and your car. Look, I am willing to give a little here and cut you a deal of some sort. You tell me who it was and, if any, who they were involved with. For that, I will keep this quiet from your boss and from whoever it was that asked you."

"How do I know that you are going to keep your end of the deal?"

"Because this is all recorded." Sofia pulled out a Dictaphone from behind the vase showed TJ. " And you are more than welcome to have this audio afterwards."

"Okay. Michael Henderson and his girl, Amelia. They have a grudge against Letty. It's not the first time they've used me like this. But before you judge it's never drugs, always alcohol, just a little bit more than they usually have, that's it and Letty is the first underage."

"Okay, thank you. You can go."

TJ left and Sofia breathed a sigh and relaxed into her seat. Running her hands over her face and through her hair, she took a deep breath before throwing herself back into a seating position and grabbing her phone.

"Hi, Owen. It's Sofia."

"Hello, how are you?"

"I'm good but exhausted. I've been having meetings with some of the staff from Sunday. I would like to confirm Letty's presence at your taster day."

"That's brilliant. She deserves it."

"Alright. I've got to go but I'll ring you up soon to find out about times and days and all of that."

"Okay, I'll speak to you then. Go tell Letty the good news, she'll be awfully pleased."

Sofia hung up and gathered a few of her things. Heading down to Spanish, she greeted Elena before asking to take Letty out of the class. With a curious look, Elena granted permission and Sofia pulled Letty to one side.

"I've got some good news for you," Sofia told her.

"I get to go home?" Letty joked. "Relax, I'm joking."

"No, not quite. I have spoken to a few of the bar staff and as a result of this I have arranged your taster day with Owen."

"Are you shitting me?"

"No." A wide smile came across both Sofia and Letty's face. "I'll let you know days and dates nearer the time."

"I can't believe this. Yes!"

"Congratulations. And next time, mind the language."

"I am so excited for this."

Neela was already on the edge of her seat waiting for Letty's return and a big smile came across her face at Letty's excited expression.

"Come on, please don't keep me waiting. What did she say? Was it about Amelia?"

"No, have a little guess."

"I don't want to, I already guessed Amelia. Just tell me already."

"Sofia told me that I was getting onto the taster session."

"Ahh," Neela squealed, the whole class falling silent.

"Anything you want to share with the class, Neela?" Elena asked.

"No, nothing at all."

"I suggest you get on with it then," Elena said before giving them a knowing smirk.

* * *

"You heartless little bitch, why would you do this to my sweet angel?" Alexia Sanchez screamed through the dining hall. "You horrible woman."

Sofia covered her slight shock with a small cough and stood from her seat. Herself, Han and Gisele were having dinner in the hall with everyone else discussing Letty as Alexia came bounding towards them.

"Mrs Sanchez, how nice to see you. Please, take a seat or better so, maybe we can take this into my office away from the other patients."

"No, this is happening here."

"If you would like. Now, will we do this sitting or standing?"

"Standing, although you are very welcome to sit so I can shout over you."

"Somehow I think I already know what this is about."

"You should."

_Earlier that day_

"_Mrs Sanchez, good afternoon."_

"_Good afternoon Mrs Toretto, please call me Alexia. To what do I owe the pleasure of your time?"_

"_I'm afraid it's bad news," Sofia said. "It's about Amelia."_

"_Oh no, has anything happened to her?"_

"_No. It's more bad news for you. We've had to come to the decision to terminate Amelia's time at the centre. We feel that while she has been welcomed here, she has been reluctant to receive out help and has done so by some very unacceptable actions."_

"_Such as?"_

"_With no disrespect, I feel that this conversation should take place face to face as opposed to over the phone. Perhaps we could arrange a time next week to talk things over but we will need you to come and collect Amelia tonight if that is possible."_

"_You're throwing my daughter out just like that?"_

"_It's not quite just like that. We have had a number of issues with Amelia, all of which you know of, and now we can simply no longer cater for her."_

"_She is a young girl," Alexia exclaimed. "Vulnerable, you can't do this to her."_

"_I'm afraid we have been left with no choice."_

"_You'll be hearing from me very soon." And with that, Alexia put the phone down._

_Friday 26__th__ September 2014 (continued)_

"The way you have treated my daughter is unacceptable. I have not even heard the reason why yet."

Sofia sighed. People like this got on her nerves, always seeing the good in their children was a positive but sometimes parents took it too far. "As I said before, we can take this into my office."

"No, I want to hear exactly what Amelia has done and I want everyone else to hear it too."

"Okay. Amelia and another student paid a member of the bar staff who worked on the night of our fundraising ball to spike another of our pupil's drinks. This is highly unacceptable and adding to Amelia's previous record, we can no longer keep her here. I am a firm believer in second chances but she has crossed the line. Gisele, if you could go and tell Amelia to collect her stuff."

"You haven't told her?"

"Yes, earlier. But she was adamant that she would not be going anywhere. Now seeing as you are here to collect her, she can gather her things."

"I cannot believe you."

"This is probably the best entertainment the centre has had in all its four years and I haven't even been here a month," Letty whispered. She had eaten her dinner earlier and had gone back to her room but once the news spread of Alexia's arrival, almost the whole centre had gathered at the canteen.

"It's the best since I've been here," Neela agreed. "At least we can say she gets from her mother now."

"Mother! What are you doing?" Amelia shouted through the hall. Her bags were dragging behind her and Gisele was carrying a small handbag.

"Amelia, how nice to see you."

"Why is this happening? Why are you not doing anything?"

"I have tried, but you'll have to speak to Mrs Toretto about this. I could not find a suitable reason for your expulsion so to say."

"Mrs Sanchez, Amelia. We have both had conversations about this and while I understand why you would want to do this in front of everyone, I really think this is the time to take this into my office. I don't want to embarrass either one of you any further."

"No, I don't even want to hear it. Amelia, let's go. You'll be hearing from my lawyer," Alexia threatened, grabbing Amelia's handbag from Gisele and storming off. Amelia quickly followed after her.

Just as the hall fell silent, an outburst of chatter occurred. Patients turned to each other and began talking, all surprised at Amelia's dramatic exit.

"She deserved it."

"I'm not surprised, she had it coming to her."

"Maybe this place will be a bit more happier now."

"Okay. I know you're probably a little bit sick of them by now but I think it's fair to see that we need an assembly." At their groans, Sofia sighed. "I don't want to do this either but seeing as most of you are already here we might as well do this now. Gisele, Han, if you can go and round up everybody else, assembly starts in ten minutes."

Sofia grabbed her plate and dropped it into the tray and walked through to the assembly hall. Everyone followed her reluctantly and by the time Gisele and Han were back, Sofia had already planned her speech in her head and repeatedly it four times. Receiving a signal from Gisele and one from Han, Sofia began.

"I'm sure you're all aware of what happened in the dining hall earlier. Amelia has left our care and will not be returning. But while she has, she has left leaving behind a very important message. You are here to heal and to get better, if you cannot understand these terms and follow these rules you will be leaving. What Amelia did was unforgivable and she put another member of this centre in danger. I hope I never need to repeat this process again. Any questions?"

Freddy Calderon was brave enough to raise his hand. "What exactly did she do?"

"Freddy, if I told you, I would have to kill you. You are dismissed."

* * *

_Saturday 27__th__ September 2014_

Like most days, Letty dragged herself into Gisele's office and sat down. She was greeted with a small smile from Gisele and she gave a grunt in return.

"I see we are ready and waiting this morning?" Gisele joked. The older woman found Letty's morning routine funny every time. Slowly walk into the office, mumbling and grumbling, take a seat and then glare until Gisele started asking questions.

"I don't know why you expect so much from me," Letty replied. "I mean, since when was it acceptable to make people get up this early in the morning?"

"You'll need to get up early for cardiology anyway so you might as well start somewhere. I heard the news from Sofia, congratulations."

A smile instantly came across Letty's face. "It's amazing isn't it? I can't actually believe this is happening. I really thought that the ball would have ended everything but I guess not."

"From that smile it wouldn't be hard to guess that you are happy about that but unfortunately we need to cover some of the unhappy times as well. Seeing as this is all related to school in some way or another, tell me how school influenced your self-harm."

"You're going to do this to me now? But I'm so happy at the moment," Letty moaned, her bottom lip poking out in protest.

"Yes, I am. I'll start with a question shall I? Were your friends supportive or not supportive towards your self-harm?"

"I didn't really have many friends, so to say. I had this one girl when I first started but then she left so I was on my own."

"Did you find it particularly hard to make new friends?"

"I would say so. If you were to walk into my school right now and ask anyone their opinion on me or how they felt about me leaving, I bet half of them wouldn't have even noticed I'd gone."

"Do you think your inability to make friends contributed significantly to the start of your self-harm? If you were to rate it out of ten, with one being not at all and ten being absolutely, it was the only reason."

Letty sat quietly as she thought about her answer."I'm not sure, maybe a four." People's opinions of her didn't really affect her as they did other people. "But it did contribute to other things that made me start."

"Such as?"

"They would often bring up the fact that my dad wasn't around and it was just me and mum. Of course, they all had their perfect little families."

"And this all leads back to your dad not being present during your childhood."

"Yeah."

"Okay, I think your rating may be a little off course. By the sounds of it, school was a massive influence because it triggered everything. Your dad was essentially an underlying problem but school triggered it all off. Without the input from everything at school this may not have happened. I think it would be good if you went away and thought about that as well."

"Okay, I'll have a think about it." Gisele raised her eyebrows at Letty's relaxed response. "I promise."

"Alright." Gisele looked at her watch. "You've got ten minutes left but you can go. I think we've been over enough today."

Letty almost leapt out of her chair and left the room, leaving Gisele shaking her head behind her. Heading back to the West Wing, Letty was pulled over by Sofia who guided her over to a bench in the corridor.

"Good morning, Letty. By the time I'm guessing you've just finished up your appointment with Gisele although you seem to be a few minutes early."

"Yeah, we talked about some pretty heavy stuff so she let me leave once we were done."

"Okay, I just wanted to catch up with you about Amelia and all the dramas of yesterday."

"If I'm being honest I'd just like to put it all behind me and move forward. She's gone now so I don't need to worry about it and the gossip will die down as soon as any more drama comes along so that shouldn't be too hard to do."

"Okay, if you're absolutely sure. You know where to find me."

"Thank you."

After getting back to her room, getting changed into her gym gear and having some down time, Letty made her way to the gym. Dom was already there setting up the equipment and he smiled when she appeared. Letty dropped her bag near the door and headed over to where Dom was standing over some boxing gloves.

"Are you all ready for today? We're boxing."

"I'm glad about that," Letty said, leaning down and picking up the gloves.

"You're very eager, bad session?"

"You're very nosey. It was just a bit heavy, nothing a few punches won't get rid of."

Dom picked up his pads and they set to work on some simple punches before moving onto hooks and then combinations. To start with they worked on the punching technique before looking at Letty's footwork and how best to position her feet to get the most control of her balance.

"I have a question for you," Dom stated.

"What's that?"

"How cold is it in New York in October?"

"You won the trip didn't you? It's not too bad, but then again I'm used to it. I wouldn't pack shorts and a few jumpers might come in handy but just normal clothes should do. When are you going?"

"I was thinking going from the third of October to the tenth. That would give me a long weekend and plenty of time to see the sights and relax a bit."

"That does sound good. Maybe you could swing it so I can get out of here and show you around. I know the place well."

Dom chuckled, his baritone voice echoing off the walls. "I don't think it quite works like that."

"But it could do? I'm sure you need a tour guide."

"Somehow I don't think that's going to fly with my mum but you're more than welcome to ask."

"I think I'll pass with that one. Maybe I was being a little over ambitious."

Dom smirked and told Letty to get on with her combinations. Using his body to block her shot, Dom acted as if he was about to hit her in the face before stopping. He explained to her about how she should try and incorporate ducking into her movements to try and get under him and attack him from a different angle. Starting again, she did so and jabbed him the side of the face gently.

"That was the most pathetic hit I have ever seen."

"I was being gentle," Letty reasoned. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Yeah right. We haven't mentioned this but have you decided about whether we're going to be carrying these on?"

"I thought I had three weeks to decide."

"You got given as long as my mum gave you to prove herself and given the fact that you have been accepted onto the course, congratulations by the way, I thought the same thing might be applied to this."

"I think I'll carry it on. Someone needs to help you build up a couple more muscles."

"Shut up, my muscles are defined enough as they are thank you very much."

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	11. Chapter 11

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked in one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Multi-chap. Dotty.

Thank you for your lovely reviews :)

* * *

_Sunday 28__th__ September 2014_

The group session had been going successfully. As per usual, it had started with the group in a circle and sharing anything important that had happened in the week. A couple were having their own conversations but Amelia's departure was still a major talking point and the topic hadn't been avoided during the session.

"I can't believe her mum came in like that," Lucile said. "Rude much."

"I'm sure we've got better things to be talking about than a week old piece of gossip," Gisele commented, taking her place in the circle. She dumped her papers on the floor and adjusted her chair.

"It happened two days ago, that is not a week. And you can't say it wasn't entertaining, she definitely had it coming."

"She might have had it coming but a big show about it wasn't needed. Now, back onto topic. Neela, I think it's your turn."

"I don't think it is. I'm sure it's someone else's turn."

"Not according to my list."

"I think I've covered pretty much every aspect of my life," Neela replied, glaring slightly at Gisele. The room went silent.

"Okay, Neela. I think we need to have a word outside. If the rest of you can just get on with talking quietly." Gisele excused herself and led Neela outside.

"I don't have anything to say to you," Neela said as she turned to face Gisele. Her arms were crossed and she wore a scowl on her face. She took to glaring at Gisele again and the older woman raised her eyebrows.

"I will not accept you talking to me like that. I thought we had settled this yesterday but I was obviously wrong."

"You were. Now if you don't mind, I have a group session to get on with," Neela said, trying to push past Gisele to get back into the session. Gisele held her arm out and cut Neela off from the door way.

"I can't let you go back when you're being like this. The idea is to help people, not spend the time listening to you make snide comments about me. I'll send Letty out in a minute."

Gisele went back into the room and walked over to Letty. She leant down behind and whispered something in her ear before Letty got up and left the room. Gisele sat back in her seat as Letty joined Neela.

"What was all that about?" Letty asked, leaning against the wall.

"Her, she was being a bitch yesterday."

"What did she do?"

"We were just talking and then she brought up loads of stuff that wasn't needed and it made me a bit upset and we had a few words. I hadn't spoken to her until earlier."

"That just sounds bad. I wouldn't expect her to be like that though. She's normally so nice and relaxed."

"I know," Neela agreed. "Maybe I overreacted a little bit but I don't think I did majorly."

"Maybe have a chat with her later and see what she says. Or ever better later?"

"Are you for real?" Neela looked at Letty as if she had grown and extra head. She had no plans on speaking to Gisele before her session on Wednesday and she even contemplating about turning up to that. She knew that Gisele was there to cover her history and draw out emotions and feelings that she had but nothing this big had been covered before. It had been a shock to the system.

"I'm being serious. You just need to have a chat with her, clear the air."

"I don't think so."

"Neela, you just need to let go sometimes. Forget what has happened between you two because at the end of the day you will have to go back to her until you're finished here and there's no point in doing that if you're going to be annoyed with her all the time. It's not good for you or your development."

"That's some serious councillor shit from you there, do you need to take a breath, have a glass of water?" Neela joked.

"Ha ha, hilarious," Letty replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Are you ready to go back in?"

"Nah, I think I probably need to be a bit more smiley for Gisele to really believe that you have any ability to make me smile."

"I am perfectly good at that thank you. In fact I have a joke; what do you call a fish with no eyes?"

"I don't know, please enlighten me."

"A fsh."

"I don't get it." Neela looked at Letty blankly and Letty sighed. It was a classic joke that had absolutely no purpose what so ever but to not get it?

"How do you spell fish?"

"F-i-s-h. I still don't understand."

"If the fish has no eyes then you take the I out of the spelling and you end up with fsh," Letty explained.

"I'm just going to go back in now. Maybe you should stay out here and think up some more jokes."

"I thought it was pretty good."

"Well, it wasn't."

Letty and Neela went back inside and carried on with the rest of the session. Neela ignored Gisele for the duration although it did mean that there was no awkward silences or any unwanted comments. Gisele also ignored Neela but allowed everyone to pick their own partners in the second part of the group session. This resulted in mainly chat but you could only fall into someone's arms so many times. At the end, Gisele pulled Letty aside.

"What's happening with Neela?"

"I think you may have a second chance," Letty joked lightly but stopped when she saw the serious nature of Gisele's face. "I see your point and I see Neela's point. You both have valid arguments but unfortunately you both think very differently about them."

"So she'll be alright with me on Wednesday then?"

"She should do."

"Okay, thanks Letty."

As Letty walked off, Han came out of the shadows. He strolled casually towards Gisele and she threw open her arms to greet him in a hug. With big workloads and the dramas within the centre, they had barely seen each other in the last week and were craving each other's affection. Taking her face into his hands, Han pressed a kiss to Gisele's lips and she reciprocated it.

"I've missed you," Han admitted.

"So have I."

"I will arrange for us to go out for dinner at some point soon and we can catch up then."

"Where will we go?"

"I will think of something and plan it all so all you need to do put on a nice dress and turn up."

"Alright then, I'll put my trust in you."

"Thanks, I really appreciate it," Han joked.

* * *

_Tuesday 30__th__ September 2014_

Letty, Neela and a group of other C Warders had all gathered in reception. Now that the ball was over and they no longer needed to shop for the occasion, a bus had been arranged to take them to the cinema again. As per usual, a vote had been taken between the people going to choose the film. Neela and Letty were happy considering they had chosen that film but some of the other Warders were less than pleased.

"You're making me watch this?" One of the boys remarked. "I haven't been to the cinema in two weeks and you give me this?"

"Welcome to democracy," Suki replied. "Everyone on the bus."

The group climbed aboard the bus and a light chatter continued until they reached the cinema. Suki went ahead to purchase the tickets while Roman stayed behind to look after the group. Suki returned with the tickets and handed them out, Letty and Neela receiving theirs before heading over to the desk to get some popcorn for the film.

"I can't take you anywhere," Letty remarked as they walked into the screen room.

"What do you mean?"

"You flirting with everyone. You've been doing it all morning. Please tell me you at least knew that you were fluttering your eyelashes at the man who served us."

"He was fit," Neela argued. "If I was to flutter my eyelashes at anyone it would be him."

"I see your point," Letty agreed. "He was rather fit. He definitely works out."

"Not looking for a replacement for Dom are you?" Neela teased. She had tried bringing Letty and Dom's Saturday workout sessions into conversation before but Letty had avoided the bait every time.

"No," Letty insisted as they sat down. "I like my sessions with Dom."

"Just the sessions?"

"Yes, now shut up. The film is starting."

They walked out the film an hour and a half later and started to head towards the shops. Neela was currently eating the last bits of their popcorn while Letty was window shopping.

"I have a question to ask you," Neela said. "How do you feel about going back to the convenience store?"

"The one from a couple of weeks back?"

"Yeah. Only I really fancy some crisps and they are the only place that I know do the Thai Sweet Chilli flavour."

"It's fine. We can go, it doesn't bother me."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Neela and Letty headed straight towards the convenience store and Letty felt a tingle in her stomach as she first entered. The place held an array of memories and was the starting point of her training sessions with Dom and the beginning of her future cardiology session. Neela, however, went straight for the crisps, pulling a tube of Thai Sweet Chilli off the shelf and holding them to her chest.

"I've missed you so much," she cried as if she was being reunited with a long lost family member after decades.

"Neela, they're crisps," Letty pointed out.

"They are amazing crisps with amazing flavour, they're not just crisps. Do you feel weird?"

"About being here?" Letty asked. Neela nodded. "Not particularly, it's not strange."

"Now, now, now. What are we doing here?" Michael asked.

Amelia's old partner in crime strolled down the aisle and came to join Letty and Neela. He reached his hand into the basket and picked out Neela's crisps. He opened the packet and grabbed a handful, throwing them into his mouth all at once.

"These are pretty good crisps, wouldn't you say?"

"Michael, what are you doing here? It's not your day," Neela asked. She snatched the crisps out of his hands and placed them back in her basket.

"I didn't really fancy listening to Cara go on and on today so I decided not to go. I'm sure she won't miss me."

"I doubt anyone would miss you," Letty remarked before turning around and inspecting the chocolate.

"What did you say to me?" Michael asked threateningly. "I hope it wasn't what I thought you said, more for your sake than mine."

"Michael, you don't scare me," Letty said. "You can put on your tough guy act anytime you want but I couldn't care less. You come in here like you own the place but you don't. Do everyone a favour and just leave."

"Oh, she's found her voice. It's a pity that you couldn't find it when you had half your head in the toilet on the night of the ball. Not too good when it comes to dealing with alcohol?"

"Do we have a problem here?" Juan, the shop owner asked.

"Not at all, Michael here was just leaving," Neela replied.

"Well get on with it then."

"Thanks, Juan," Neela said once Michael left.

"It's alright, I can't stand people like him but you two are always welcome here." Juan glanced into Neela's basket. "I bet that was him, wasn't it?" Neela nodded. "You give me them and take another tube off the shelf."

"It's fine, honestly. He had three maximum," Neela lied, slightly. It was more like ten but that was besides the point. "You go and waste Thai Sweet Chilli, it's just not allowed. It should be a crime. I'll have these, it's fine."

"And now I like you even more."

Letty and Neela finished at the convenience store and did a bit more shopping before heading back to the meeting point. They got onto the bus and went back to the centre where Sofia was waiting for them.

"Can I borrow Letty please," she asked.

"What do you need me for?"

"I have some very good news."

"I have spoken to Owen and we have arranged the taster session for you. It's on Friday the 3rd October so you'll need to come out of your last two lessons but we will schedule it so it falls on one of your days off if you want to carry on with it."

"I can't believe it, that's amazing. Thank you so much."

"It's no problem at all. Owen was very keen on you and I'm sure that you will fit right in when you get there. You'll get picked up after lunch and then someone will get you when it's over.

"Is there anything in particular that I need to wear?"

"I think you'll get given clothes there so just wear whatever but I will ask for you and get back to you on that."

"I don't know what else to say, thank you."

"Go and enjoy the rest of your day."

Letty said goodbye to Sofia and jumped excitedly over to Neela. The rest of the group had left and Letty did a little victory dance in the middle of reception. Marcia laughed loudly and Letty stopped, giving a small smile before carrying on. Sofia also watched from afar and a smile covered her face before she walked away.

"What's happened?" Neela asked, getting excited. It was the happiest she had ever seen Letty before.

"A date has been set for my session with Owen.

"When is it?"

"Friday 3rd October. I am so excited."

"We can tell, your little dance there might have become a YouTube trend if I'd have recorded it. You can certainly throw some shapes."

"I do like to put in some effort sometimes."

Neela laughed. "Come on you idiot. Let's teach you some proper moves."

* * *

Lena threw her last item in her shopping trolley before heading towards the checkout. Her visit from Carlos earlier in the week had her on edge and it was the first time she had stepped out of her house since. Lena had settled for basic meals in the week but her fridge was now bare and the cupboards sported nothing that could be transformed into an edible meal without needing an accompaniment. She loaded her shopping onto the conveyer belt and picked her purse out of her bag ready. There was nothing more she couldn't stand than unprepared people.

"Would you like some bags today?" The cashier asked.

"No, I've got my own thank you," Lena replied. She grabbed the bags from the bottom of her trolley and began to pack them as the cashier scanned them through.

"That will be $30.52 please."

"Okay." Lena opened her purse and pulled out the correct change."

The cashier printed out her receipt and handed it over, wishing her a good day as she went. Lena gave her a smile back in response and took her shopping to her car. Loading up, Lena noticed a familiar car out the corner of her eye. Trying to remember, she decided to discard it for the moment until she got home. She figured that if she forgot about it during the drive that it wasn't worth remembering about anyway. After returning her trolley and buckling in, Lena pulled out of the store car park and headed towards home, not giving a second thought to the car.

Pulling into her driveway, Lena stopped the car and began to unload her shopping. The car had turned off just after the store and Lena had not thought about it again. Lena unpacked her shopping bags and returned them to the car. She busied herself with stocking the food in the appropriate places before settling in front of the television for the afternoon run of soaps. After about an hour, the doorbell rang.

"I see you still haven't done as I asked," Carlos said, leaning against the doorframe as Lena opened the door.

"Get out," Lena said calmly. Her eyes were like slits and her blood was boiling.

"Oh no, not quite yet." Carlos pushed himself past Lena and slammed the door behind him. He strolled over to the sofa and sat himself down, picking up Lena's drink and taking a sip.

"Carlos, what are you doing?"

"I see you still enjoy a nice spritzer in the afternoon."

"Leave now. I will never do what I want you to do. You don't own me anymore, you have no control over my life."

"I don't think so." Carlos moved with such speed until he was face to face with Lena.

"It's time for you to go," Lena said. She turned her back to Carlos and moved towards the door, ready to open it for him. He grabbed her arm and threw her back over the sofa, her thin body landing with a loud thud. She looked up at him glaringly and pulled herself into a standing position. Her back ached and it felt like her ankle had been badly twisted, if not sprained.

"Oh, Lena, dear. My sweet, Lena. You never did learn when to shut up."

Carlos started to move slowly towards her and she inched slowly back. Letty's old school photo hung over her head and she pulled it down, the nail falling to the floor as she swung it over Carlos' head. The glass shattered over his head and dug into his skin, making him more angry than he was before. Lena dodged him as he lunged towards her and made her way into the kitchen, grabbing a loose knife on the side that she had used to make her sandwich.

"You can't run," Carlos taunted. He pulled a knife from his back pocket. "We have the same weapons, albeit yours is slightly bigger but I'll let you have that one. I'll let you have the first attack."

"I'm not fighting you," Lena said. Her fingers were trembling and the knife was jolting all over the place.

"I guess I'll just fight you then."

Carlos raced towards Lena and she dropped the knife in panic, bolting to the living room. Carlos threw his knife behind him as he caught her arm, moving his hands around her neck. Lena kicked her legs and caught the back of Carlos' knee, sending his left side to the ground. He quickly regained his balance and pushed her up against the wall, his hands still tightly fastened around her neck. She clawed her nails down his cheek and felt a slight pleasure as the skin broke.

"Bitch," Carlos spat out. He gripped harder around her neck and Lena spluttered for breath.

"Lena, Lena. I have your plate." A voice called out from the doorway and the visitor let themselves in. Lena's neighbour gasped in shock at the mess and the sight of Lena up against the wall and he dropped the plate.

"Derek," Lena rasped. Her face was starting to turn red and she was kicking her legs about. "Derek, help me."

"Shut up. Derek, the only movement you're doing is out the door. Do you understand me?" Derek glared at Carlos and moved closer before jumping back in shock as Carlos violently head butted Lena. "Do you get the message?"

Lena spluttered and Carlos dropped his hands from around her neck. Lena fell down the wall until she slumped in a ball on the ground and Carlos kicked her before walking past Derek and out of the door.

"Lena," Derek said, rushing towards her. Her head was leaning forward and her eyes were closed.

"Derek," she mumbled.

"It's okay, let me call an ambulance." Derek pulled out his phone and called 911. He informed them of the situation and Lena's condition. "Help is on its way," he reassured.

"Letty, I need to make sure Letty is safe."

"We can worry about that later, let's focus on you right now."

"No, we can't. That's her dad and he wants to see her. He can't, Derek. I won't let him. Please ring the centre," Lena insisted. Seeing Derek's hesitation, she tried to pull herself up using the wall for support until Derek pushed her back down.

"Where's the number?"

"It's in the top drawer."

Derek left Lena and went to search in the drawer. Pulling out a card, he dialled the number. Getting through to Marcia, he quickly explained the situation and hung up just as the paramedics came rushing through the door.

"Hello, my name is Sarah, I'm going to be helping you out today. Tell me where it hurts the most."

* * *

Marcia knocked softly on Sofia's door and let herself in after Sofia's call. Refusing Sofia's offer of a drink, she took a seat.

"Letty Ortiz's mum has been taken into the ER after being attacked. She has requested Letty to go to the hospital."

"I don't see why that is a problem. I'll go and get her and drive her up there. Thank you, Marcia."

Marcia left and Sofia quickly followed, only turning in the other direction. Sofia reached the West Wing and saw Letty sitting with Neela. Catching Letty's eye, Sofia waved her over and the older woman watched as she excused herself from the conversation and walked over.

"Sofia, what can I do for you? Second time today, I'm starting to feel special," Letty joked. "I hope it's as good a news as earlier."

"I need two things actually but one can wait until later. I need you to come with me."

"Why?" Letty asked, her guard immediately going up. "What's happened?"

"Your mum has been involved in an accident. She has gone to the ER but has asked for you to go there, I will be driving you."

"Okay, okay," Letty repeated. Letty mouthed 'later' to Neela and walked off with Sofia. They walked in silence to the car, pausing briefly to sign out at reception.

"Are you okay, Letty?" Sofia asked as they pulled out of the centre. "You seem very quiet."

"I wonder why," Letty replied sarcastically. "I'm sorry. That was unnecessary."

"It's fine. I understand. It's your mum."

Sofia parked the car and led Letty into the ER. Walking up to the front desk, she explained who they were and were told to take a seat and that they would be called when needed. Letty sat there tapping her fingernails on the plastic chairs and received more than one glare as she tapped out the latest tune to fill her head. Sofia, on the other hand, had a much quieter approach to waiting and she browsed her tablet in silence.

"Family of Lena Ortiz?"

"That's me," Letty jumped up at the sound of the doctor and rushed towards him, barely giving Sofia time to put away her tablet.

"Do you have an adult with you?" The doctor enquired.

"And that would be me," Sofia said, joining the pair.

"Okay, Ms Ortiz has some serious injuries yet they are not life threatening. She will need to be kept at the hospital overnight and maybe for a couple of days after that once we've reassessed her. Hopefully tonight will give us a good indication of where we are and we can move on in the morning accordingly."

"What exactly were her injuries?"Letty asked as the doctor led them through to where Lena was.

"She was strangled quite badly and suffered a few knocks to the head. We're most worried about her brain being starved of oxygen for a long period of time so we need to take her for a few scans."

"Letty," Lena cried out once she saw her daughter. "Letty, come here."

Letty rushed over to her mother's bedside and embraced her in a hug. Sofia stayed behind as they whispered in each other's ear before the doctor pulled Letty aware in case any of the wires were damaged. Letty took a seat and Lena indicated for Sofia to take the other one.

"Thank you for bringing Letty here," Lena told Sofia.

"It's no bother. I would want the same."

"Yes. I have a lot to tell you, Letty. I'm afraid you won't like all of it but it's time that you knew."

"Mum, not being funny or anything but you're acting kind of scary at the moment."

"Your dad has been in contact with me," Lena rushed out. "He came to the house not long ago and asked to see you."

"I don't want to see him," Letty interjected. "I don't want to be anywhere near him."

"I told him exactly that but he is planning on getting in touch with you or seeing you and knowing him it is going to happen whether either of us like it or not."

"I'm guessing that this was all him then?" Letty asked.

"Yes. As I said, your dad will stop at nothing and this is where I need you, Sofia. I need you to protect my daughter with every ounce of strength you and the centre have because Carlos is a dangerous man. He will not stop until he gets what he wants so I am asking you now to do everything you can."

"Of course we will," Sofia insisted. "I don't want Letty hurt as much as you do. However, you might not be able to carry on as normal because while your safety is important, so are the other patient's as well."

"On a lighter note, I got my date for my cardiology taster session today," Letty said.

"Did you? When is it for?" Lena asked. She was proud of Letty for wanting to achieve something with her life. She had seen so many people carelessly throw their lives away and settle for any random job when they could aspire for so much more.

"Friday 3rd October. I have to miss the last two lessons of the day but I don't really mind. I even had a little victory dance earlier. Neela thought I was a weirdo but who cares?"

"As long as you're happy, you can do any sort of dance you like. I don't mind."

Letty and Lena carried on with a regular conversation as Sofia sat and observed. It was nice seeing a mother and daughter interact so calmly and relaxed when both had a series of problems. Letty was a self harmer who had spent nearly a month inside a centre with almost no contact with the outside world and Lena was a mother who had uprooted her whole life for her daughter including moving away from her whole family and her job and starting again on the other side of the country. That was the sign of true commitment.

After an hour or so, the doctor came to collect Letty and Sofia as they had to take Lena for some scans. Letty said goodbye to her mum and Lena reminded Sofia of Carlos' nature. As the doctor took Lena away for her scan, Letty collapsed into one of the hospital chairs and sighed heavily.

"I've never seen her like this before. So helpless. I always knew that my dad wasn't the kindest of people to her but I was so young I don't remember most of it but the few times I do remember it was never this bad."

"I think we need to get you back and you can have a shower, get relaxed and have a nice sleep. You've still got Gisele's session tomorrow remember."

"I know."

"And I think it would probably be a good idea to cancel the taster session, just until we get things under control with your dad."

"No, that's not happening. I am not letting him rule over my life forever, I am going. End of discussion."

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	12. Chapter 12

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Multi-chap. Dotty.

I didn't get round to replies last time but thank you all so much for your reviews :)

* * *

_Wednesday 1__st__ October 2014_

"How are you feeling?" Gisele asked as Letty walked into her office for their session. "I heard about your mum from Sofia yesterday. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, it wasn't the best thing in the world to hear."

"I do want to talk about your mum being in hospital and the effect that it has had on you but I want to backtrack to earlier yesterday first. I heard that you and Neela went back to the convenience store," Gisele said. Letty nodded her head in agreement. "How did you find it?"

"It was alright, I didn't have any flashback moments or anything."

Gisele nodded and jotted down some notes. "That's good, it seems to me that you're over what happened there and if anything you've used it to help you and aid you in your recovery so I'm proud of you for that."

Moving off the topic of the outing, Gisele and Letty carried on to talk about everything else that had happened since they had seen each other on Saturday. They discussed the group session and wherever or not it was helping Letty and how she was coping with the lessons. They then talked about Owen and how Letty was feeling about the one on one session. As she was hoping to follow a scientific path in the future, she had been given more work from Han to work on during her own time. After moving through the educational side of the centre, Gisele moved on to Lena.

"How have you coped with Lena being in hospital? If you were to score it out of ten with one being dreadfully and ten being amazingly, what would it be?"

"Probably a five. I haven't beat anyone up or got annoyed with people but I didn't sleep last night and other stuff so it hasn't been brilliant."

"That's not too bad. It is very common for people like you who have family members in hospital to not sleep out of worry or fear that something further is going to happen to them so it's perfectly natural" Gisele reassured Letty. "How would you define other stuff?"

"Just other stuff."

"Letty, did you cut?"

"Yes." Letty looked down into her lap and became very interested in her hands. Gisele took a minute to observe Letty's body language and the younger girl fidgeted under her stare.

"I need you to really listen to me now, Letty. While what you have done is a step back, the fact that you have told me? That's two steps forward. When you first came here, you would never have told me about cutting but now you will. That is improvement."

"I just feel like it is against everything that I have worked for," Letty confided. Not only that, she was afraid her sessions with Owen would be taken off her. "Like I've worked my way up the board, caught a ride on a up the ladder and then got the biggest snake on the board."

"Letty, it's okay to mess up sometimes but the most important thing is that you pick yourself up and carry on. If it takes a day, a month or a year to happen then it does. You just have to trust that it will happen at some point."

"I hope you're right."

"I am. I also heard about your dad being back in town. How do you feel about that?"

"I'm not too sure," Letty admitted. "You know what he was like when I was little but I never really saw that because my mum kept it from me for so long. One side of me just wants to see him and confront him, ask him why he did it and perhaps punch him; but then the other side wants to have nothing to do with him so me and my mum don't need to go through everything all over again."

"I see what you mean. You want to know why but you don't want the past to be dragged up again."

"Exactly, I also don't want to do anything against what my mum wants. I have no interest in restarting a father daughter relationship with him or having anything to do with him after this all dies down."

"But you want to know why; I would too. I would recommend that you speak to your mum and talk about it. The only way you are going to be able to move past this together with you both being one hundred percent happy is if you talk about it."

"I think so but I don't think she'll talk about just yet."

"Your homework then is to make sure that you talk about this with her before you're meant to leave here."

"That's it?"

"You'll find it a lot harder to talk about this to her than you did to me, I'm sure of that," Gisele told Letty. Letty nodded in agreement, telling Lena was going to be a lot different and definitely a lot harder.

In Sofia's office, Suki had just sat down and was waiting to find out why Sofia had called her there.

"You took the C Warders on their cinema trip yesterday didn't you?" Sofia asked rhetorically. She was speaking normally yet an undertone of anger was present.

"I did, was there a problem?" Suki questioned. In her own opinion, she had handled the situation well; no one had ended up in the ER or injured and everyone had been returned safe and soundly to reception. What could have gone wrong?

"Would you like to explain to me how someone else managed to get onto the bus, into town and back on the bus?"

"I didn't even know."

"Exactly, you didn't even know. Something could have happened and these children are in my care, in your care. Do you know how dangerous that is for us as a company? We could be shut down if other people found out. How could you be so stupid?"

"I was too focused on getting everyone else ready. And why am I the only person in here? I wasn't the only person that went, Roman did come with me, I don't see why you haven't got him in here with me. This can't all be my fault."

"I will be speaking to Roman later but right now you need to learn how to accept your responsibilities. I will need to speak to Tony about this and then we will decide about yours and Roman's future here. For the moment, you can teach your normal lessons and I advise that you don't mention this to any other members of staff and definitely not to the patients. You can go."

* * *

_Friday 3__rd__ October 2014_

"Can you believe that you've been here for a month?" Neela asked Letty as they headed towards Food Technology. After Letty's session with Gisele, she had gone back to her room and had listed the many different ways to start the conversation with Lena about Carlos. She had decided to leave it for now.

"I know, it's crazy isn't it? I didn't even think I would last two minutes in this place and now I've been here for a whole month."

"In a way I'm glad you came here because now I've got a best friend."

"Neela, no need for the sap." Letty smiled at her. "But I'm glad I've got you as my best friend as well, could you imagine being friends with some of the other people in here? Imagine if I had been friends with Amelia? That could have gone down a lot differently."

"If you were friends with Amelia and her currently disbanded gang, I think half the people here would hate you. I can even think of a few that would consider murder," Neela added jokingly.

"That does sound like an accurate outcome," Letty agreed. "So I'm glad that I ended up being friends with you instead. Seriously though, a month?" Letty repeated.

"Yep. I thought that later we could have a mini celebration? I have my crisps from Tuesday and I'm sure I have some other nibbles in my room somewhere that we can use. I can do your nails and your hair for you if you like?" Seeing Letty's face, Neela realised that a beauty based celebration probably wasn't the best idea. "Or we can just eat, chat and have a look through a couple of magazines. Either way we need to celebrate."

"We'll see," Letty said. She was hoping to visit Lena later. Sofia had driven her up to the hospital every night so far and the doctors were sure that she would be out by today or tomorrow.

"We can just go with the flow. You don't need to make a decision now, I understand about your mum and that so whatever you feel like doing, let me know and I'll plan around it."

"Thanks, Neela, I appreciate that. Anyway, I think it's time we went in, we can't stand outside forever."

"Neela, Letty, nice of you to join us today," Suki said moodily as they walked inside. Everyone else was already wearing their aprons so they quietly went to wash their hands, tie up their hair and grab an apron. "Okay, now we have everyone, let's get started."

Just as Suki was about to begin, a loud crash sounded from outside and the door swung open. Michael Henderson came flying through the door and banged his fist on the work surface. The class stood in silence as Suki sighed heavily and dropped the spoon she had just picked up.

"Outside now," Suki barked at Michael, pointing towards the door.

"Not yet, I still have some people that I need to talk to. Ah, Letty," he said as he spotted her. "I think we need to have a little chat."

"I don't think so, why don't you go and enjoy your time off?" Letty suggested. She had no interest in talking to him after the ball and had no time to deal with him after Tuesday.

"I think we need a little catch up. We didn't seem to cover everything on Tuesday, how about we go now and the rest of you can carry on. I don't want to cause trouble."

"I think you've caused enough trouble already," Suki snapped. "I've already asked you once, will you please go outside. I hope I don't need to ask you again."

Michael laughed and just leaned against the work surface. He put his hands in his pockets and waited, staring intensely at Letty. She looked directly at him, not breaking eye contact as his lips twisted into a smirk. Letty crossed her arms over her chest, clearing unimpressed with the situation.

"Okay, it's very clear that you don't want to listen to me so Lucile, can you make a visit to Sofia's office for me and get her please? Thank you."

"Off you go," Michael inputted, receiving a glare from Suki.

"Michael, you are on very thin ice already and you are not helping your situation."

"Is there something we can help you with?" Dom asked as he appeared in the doorway with Mia. They had been heading towards Sofia's office when they had heard the commotion. Dom smiled lightly at Letty and she returned it.

"It's fine, Dom. Thank you anyway, we're just having a slight problem with Michael but it's being sorted."

"Okay, I can always take him to mum's office if you want? That way you can carry on with your lesson."

"I've just sent Lucile to go and get her for me but thank you for the offer." At that point, Lucile came back into the room without Sofia. "Is there a problem?"

"Sofia asked if there was anyone else that would be able to take Michael to reception instead as she is about to start a meeting."

"I'll take him," Mia offered. "I don't mind. Michael, let's go."

Michael looked at Letty and then at Mia. Sighing, he pushed himself off the surface and slowly walked towards the doorway where Mia was already waiting for him. Turning back, he gave Letty a final look and followed Mia out to Sofia's office.

"I hate to be a pain but is it possible for me to borrow Letty for two minutes?"

"You have a minute, I need to start my lesson at some point," Suki snapped. Dom gave Suki and grateful smile and Letty followed him outside.

"What do you need me for?" Letty asked.

"I may be a little bit late tomorrow. I have some bits to do down town and then I need to go to my university to hand in some sheets. It shouldn't take too long but depending on traffic and if there's anything my lecturer needs to talk to me about. I should be there at a reasonable time but just a pre warning."

"Alright, that's fine. I'll take five after my session with Gisele then. If my mum's not out then I'll see if I'm able to go and see her. I'm sure there's a visiting hours in the morning so I'll pop in a see her."

"How is she now? Mum told me that she was slowly getting better."

"Yeah, the bruising has gone down a lot and I've got my fingers crossed that she will be out tonight and her neighbour has agreed to check in on her a couple of times a day so I think she should be alright."

"I think you worry too much," Dom said. "Just relax and we can have a good session tomorrow. Also, is it alright if I start hooking you up to a machine that is going to measure your blood pressure and your muscles? I have an essay on how sports drinks affect your performance and I'll get extra credit if I give my own results."

"That's fine, bring them all along tomorrow. I'm not quite sure how I'll manage it without falling over a wire but I'll give it a good go," Letty laughed. She had a habit of injuring something every time she went on a treadmill.

"Okay, thank you. You better get in, she doesn't seem to be in the best of moods today."

"I'll see you tomorrow then."

"See you."

* * *

"How are you feeling?" The nurse asked. She wrapped the pad round Lena's arm to take her blood pressure and she picked up her notes, jotting down the number.

"I'm feeling quite good," Lena replied. "My neck is feeling a lot better now."

"What about eating?" The nurse questioned. It was Lena's daily check up and she was hoping to go home. All in all, she had a crushed windpipe, a sprained ankle and bad bruising around her neck and arms.

"Eating is good, I managed to get through my jacket potato earlier and my jam sponge afterwards went down a treat. What are the chances of me being able to go home later?" Lena asked. She was fed up of spending the whole day laying in bed. Lena had used her crutches to go down to the cafe and outside into the gardens but she had still seen more inside than outside in the last few days and it was starting to get to her.

"Quite good, your movement is good and you are eating well. Did you say you have someone to help you out at home?"

"Yeah, my neighbour said he'll come over if I need him."

"I don't see any reason why not then. The doctor should be round later so he can discharge you and give you your medication."

"Do you know what time that's going to be? Only I have no transport home and my neighbour, the one I was talking about, starts work at six tonight."

"I can see if there's anything we can arrange," the nurse said.

"Thank you."

As the nurse went, Lena got out of bed to stretch her legs. Grabbing her crutches from the end of the bed, she used them to get to the phone and called the number for the centre.

"Hello, Elizabeth Rose Centre, how can I help you?" Marcia asked.

"Hi, it's Lena Ortiz. Is Sofia about at all?"

"Not at the moment I'm afraid, she's in a meeting. Can I take a message for her?"

"Yes please. Can you tell her that I'm being released today so she doesn't need to bring Letty up to see me tonight?"

"I can, I'm glad that you're feeling better."

"I am, tell Letty that I'll talk to her soon."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye."

Three hours later and the ambulance dropped Lena off outside her house. It was half past six and the nurse had arranged for an off duty ambulance to take her home. It was on the way to the garage as the light was broken and the nurse had managed to convince them to give it a detour first.

"Here we are ma'am."

"Thank you so much," Lena said as she hobbled out the ambulance. Her bags were on her back and she used her crutches to help her to the door. Lena went inside and got settled, dumping her bags by the bottom of the stairs and collapsing on the sofa. Pulling stool closer, she rested her leg on it, grabbed the remote and started to watch the soaps for the night.

After an hour, the phone began to ring and Lena sighed, stretching over to the table and grabbing the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hi, mum. It's Letty."

"Letty, how are you? It's nice to hear from you," Lena said once she realised who it was.

"I'm good, really good. How are you? Have you been resting? I know that the ridiculous soap you insist on watching is on tonight."

"I'm fine, don't worry about me. I've got everything under control. And don't be horrible, it has one of the best OTPs in the history of television. You need to start watching it, you'd love it."

"Mum, I can tell you now that I won't be watching that any time soon. Anyway, who taught you OTP? There is no way you would have known that without hearing it from someone else then either asking them about it or googling it. Which one was it?" Letty said teasingly. She had liked seeing her mum on a regular basis and it had given her a sense of normality again.

"I asked Michelle at work. She's into it too," Lena replied. Like Letty, she missed the one on one time they had been having over the past few days. It was a reminder of what they were like before.

"You are too into this. It's not even real life. If it were real life I would understand."

"I think you're talking rubbish. How did you find today? What was it like?"

"I loved it; I hope Sofia is going to put me on a course permanently," Letty said, her voice clearly showing her excitement.

"That's brilliant. I'm so pleased. What did you do?" Lena asked.

"To start with Owen showed me around and we talked a bit about the course and what it is all about and the sort of things that I'll be doing."

"Which are?"

"You won't find it interesting, it's very long."

"Of course it'll be interesting to me, I want to be involved. I want to have some part in this; it could be your future. What type of a mother would I be if I had no idea what you were going on about half the time?"

"I'll explain it to you later. It involves a lot of hand gestures and pictures. The most exciting bit though was when we got to look at an operation and Owen organised for it to be filmed for me."

"That sounds good."

"You don't sound too convinced by that," Letty pointed out.

"Yeah, it sounds absolutely disgusting, even thinking about all that blood gives me the shivers."

"Look, mum, I need to go but I'll try and speak to you tomorrow, okay? And I'll see if I can come down and visit you or get someone to pick you up and come and see me."

"That sounds lovely, I'll talk to you soon then."

"Okay, I love you, mum."

"Love you too."

Lena disconnected the call and chucked the phone onto the table. Grabbing her crutches, she pulled herself into a standing position and hobbled to the kitchen, leaving the television blaring behind her. She pulled the bread and butter from the side and got the ham from the fridge and made herself a sandwich, not bothering to cut it in half and taking a massive bite from the side. Lena put the kettle on and made herself a cup of coffee before making two trips to the sofa carrying her dinner.

"I have to say, I make a good sandwich," Lena said to herself, taking a bite and a sip from her coffee.

Darkness had fallen outside and Lena was cuddled up on the sofa, a blanket over her figure and a new cup of coffee resting in her hands.

Suddenly, the door flung open and Carlos marched in, a smug smirk plastered across his face.

"Well, hello again darling. Fancy seeing you here," Carlos said, advancing towards Lena.

* * *

Back at the centre, Letty had settled in Sofia's office for a chat about the day. It was an informal affair, Letty had changed into her pyjamas when she got back and Sofia had told her that it didn't matter; she had even told Letty to bring her blanket with her so she would be more comfortable. Letty was clutching a cup of tea in her hands and Sofia was nursing a small cup of coffee.

"Did you have a good time?" Sofia asked.

"I did. It was really interesting and I had an amazing time."

"That's good, I thought you would. How did you find the operation? Personally, I wouldn't be able to deal with all the blood, it freaks me out. I forced myself to take a first aid course when Dom was born so I would be able to help if he got hurt. It was horrible, never again," Sofia told Letty, shuddering as she thought of the sight of blood.

"I really enjoyed. I was so glad I got to see because it's just like hands on experience only I'm not qualified yet to do any of the actual operations so that was the closest I'm going to get from the next couple of years."

"I'm sure you'll get some more opportunities in the future. That's if you're interested in going again," Sofia teased.

Letty's face lit up. "So I've got it?"

"You do, I suppose you've already told your mum," Sofia assumed.

"Yeah, I rang her earlier."

"I got told that she was out of hospital, did she say anything about how she was?"

"Not really, she put the conversation more on me and today rather than how she was feeling," Letty started. "But I could tell by her voice that she was in quite a bit of pain but I know she wouldn't want to be pulled up on it so I didn't mention it any further. She sounded pretty up beat in the circumstances though."

"I think she's really happy for you. If you were Mia I would be over the moon, you've literally turned your life around. I bet she is the proudest mum in the whole of California right now."

Letty smiled and finished the last of her tea. She put her cup on the side, snuggled further into her blanket, bringing it over her bare arms as goose bumps began to appear. Sofia took the cup and placed it on the tray, ready to take it to the dishwasher when Letty had gone.

"Now I know you're definitely interested, we need to work out a day for you to go," Sofia started. "Monday and Tuesday are the only days we can work with. Would you prefer to lose your free day or your cinema day?"

"Free day. I like going down the town with Neela and doing a bit of shopping. It's nice so I think my free day would be the best day to have off."

"Okay," Sofia said, jotting it down on a spare post it note so she wouldn't forget. "I can arrange that with Owen for you."

"Thank you. I wanted to ask, is there any chance that I can set up meetings with my mum? I liked having that time with her this week and I think it could help me."

"I'm not too sure but I'll definitely look into it and see whether it could be a possibility in the future," Sofia negotiated.

"That sounds like something I can cope with," Letty teased. She hadn't expected much although she went on the theory that if she didn't ask it would be a definite no but if she asked she would have at least a chance at a yes. "My mum will be pleased."

"Good, I'm sure she's probably curled up on the sofa with a pizza right about now. If only," Sofia said; the vision a perfect dream in her eyes.

However, back at Lena's house, she was far from curled up on the sofa. Carlos had moved from the door to the stairs and was now sitting on the bottom one, waiting as Lena eyed him up nervously. Carlos pulled a knife from his back pocket and ran his finger down the blade, smiling in satisfaction as it made a thin cut in his finger, blood seeping out through the edges.

"I seem to remember you buying me this," Carlos said. It was true; Lena had brought it for him during their marriage as an anniversary gift. It was part of a collection but it seemed that he had discarded the rest of the set.

"I know, now I regret that decision," Lena said, standing, well sitting, her ground.

Carlos moved from the stairs to behind Lena, his face leaning in closer so his breath tickled her neck. Lena shivered at the sensation and Carlos barked a laugh in her ear, using his hand to wipe her hair from her shoulder.

"Your hair was always so smooth. I used to love running my fingers through it."

"Cut the crap, Carlos. What do you want?" Lena snapped, leaning forward and moving her body so she was facing Carlos.

"I went to the centre today; she really has some friends doesn't she? Nice little brunette, goes by the name of Neela. But then she took a day trip, so I followed her to a hospital. It looks like she's interested in cardiology."

"How do you know all this?" Lena questioned. She stood up, leaving her crutches by the sofa and supporting her weight on one foot. She inched back as Carlos advanced towards her.

"I have sources, contacts that can find out anything that I need to know as quickly as I need to know it."

"Who? Tell me who," Lena demanded.

"No chance. But I will tell you that they are very well respected within the centre. Lots of interaction with the patients and the staff, even Sofia. It's not hard to find out what I want to know."

"I want you to leave her alone. Don't you come any closer," Lena said, raising her voice as Carlos came closer. She grabbed one of her crutches and held it in front of her.

Carlos moved quickly around Lena, leaving her spinning around to keep him within eyesight. He smiled smugly at her and moved back until he was leaning against the window frame, his arms crossed over his chest. Darting forward, he grabbed a small statue and smashed it into Lena's head, sending her flying to the ground, blood pouring out of her skull to stain the carpet.

"Serves you right. Bitch," Carlos said, pocketing the statue and leaving.

* * *

**R&amp;R**


	13. Chapter 13

Summary: After intense bullying left her venturing into the vicious world of self-harm, Letty is checked into one of LA's best clinics. What awaits will change her life forever. Multi-chap. Dotty.

Thank you for your reviews, they mean a lot to me. Unfortunately, this will be the last chapter posted for a while. When I first started posting, I was regularly writing but at the moment, I've hit a roadblock and I think that this is a suitable place to stop it. I'm sorry but it has to be done. I can't guarantee the next chapter but I'm guessing mid-late August.

Enjoy!

* * *

_Previously:_

"_I have sources, contacts that can find out anything that I need to know as quickly as I need to know it."_

"_Who? Tell me who," Lena demanded._

"_No chance. But I will tell you that they are very well respected within the centre. Lots of interaction with the patients and the staff, even Sofia. It's not hard to find out what I want to know."_

"_I want you to leave her alone. Don't you come any closer," Lena said, raising her voice as Carlos came closer. She grabbed one of her crutches and held it in front of her._

_Carlos moved quickly around Lena, leaving her spinning around to keep him within eyesight. He smiled smugly at her and moved back until he was leaning against the window frame, his arms crossed over his chest. Darting forward, he grabbed a small statue and smashed it into Lena's head, sending her flying to the ground, blood pouring out of her skull to stain the carpet. _

"_Serves you right. Bitch," Carlos said, pocketing the statue and leaving._

* * *

_Friday 3__rd__ October 2014 (Continued)_

Letty rushed through the ER, pushing past people until she found herself at the reception desk. She took a couple of minutes to take a breath and rested her elbows on the surface in front of her.

"Hi, I need to know if Lena Ortiz has been admitted here," Letty asked hurriedly, her breath coming out in pants.

"I'm sorry, I'm not allowed to discuss whether someone has been admitted or not. Are you of some relation to Ms Ortiz?"

"I'm her daughter, I need to know if she's here."

"I understand your worry but I need to see some identification before I can disclose that sort of information," the receptionist said, giving Letty a look of sympathy.

Letty sighed and ducked her head, turning and kicking the air in frustration. Looking up, Letty saw Sofia quickly walking towards her and she waved in her hand in a beckoning manner, looking at the receptionist to get her attention.

"Hi, my name is Sofia Toretto. I run and own the Elizabeth Rose Centre. Letty is a patient there," Sofia introduced, passing her identification over to the receptionist.

"That all looks well, if you want to take a seat momentarily and I'll get one of the doctors to come and get you."

"Okay, thank you."

Letty and Sofia took a seat and it was almost the same situation that had taken place earlier in the week. The pair sat there for nearly fifteen minutes until the doctor came out wearing a glum look.

"Family of Lena Ortiz?" He called out.

"That's me, how is she?" Letty asked as she jumped out of her seat and towards the doctor. She looked directly in his eye and waited for Sofia to catch up with her."

"I'm afraid it's not looking too good," the doctor said. "Ms Ortiz has suffered a very serious injury to her brain. We are concerned that she may have some bleeding in her brain so we are keeping a very close eye on that."

"Is she in any pain," Letty questioned, her voice quiet as she processed the information.

"She's currently hooked up to some very strong medication so she can't feel a thing. I'm afraid I can only let you five minutes with her at the moment because we have some more tests to do and it's important that these are done as soon as possible; we are stabilising her at the moment though so you've got some time."

At Letty's nod, the doctor led her and Sofia into a separate section of the ER and Letty gasped at the sight. Lena was still carrying some of her old injuries but she was now hooked up to several machines and had a breathing tube down her neck. Letty inched closer towards her, leaving Sofia hovering by the door and went to her mother's side, gently stroking her hair. She kissed Lena's cheek and clutched her hand, careful to mind the IV line.

"Fancy getting into this mess," Letty whispered, her voice becoming choked. "Don't worry because I've got you, mum. I've got you. Everything is going to be fine."

Letty coughed and a single tear slid down her cheek, splashing onto Lena's hand before Letty could wipe it away. She moved from the bed and walked over to Sofia, half listening as the doctor advised them to go down to the canteen and grab a drink and something to eat before going back to the waiting room. Letty decided to bypass the advice in case of any more news and headed straight to the waiting room, choosing the seat nearest to Lena.

"I think you should go and get something to eat, it's been three hours since we arrived and dinner was a while ago," Sofia suggested.

"No, I'm fine. I just want to know if there are any updates as soon as possible."

"Okay, I'm going to go to the canteen and grab myself a hot drink. Do you want me to bring you back anything?"

"No thanks, I'm good."

Sofia walked off and left Letty waiting for the doctor to reappear. She grabbed a magazine from the side and flicked through, reading, but not taking in, the latest celebrity gossip. Skimming the last few pages, Letty was interrupted by a familiar baritone voice.

"Letty, what are you doing here?" Dom asked as he walked over.

"Hi, what are you doing here?" Letty asked back, avoiding Dom' question.

"A boy's night out went little wrong. One of my mates ended up having a bar fight and I drew the short straw of taking him to the ER. What are you doing here?"

"My mum, she got hit over the head by something. She's with the doctors now. Your mum was with me but she's just gone to get a hot drink," Letty explained as Dom settled in the chair next to her.

The doctor came out again and went straight over to Letty, giving Dom a small smile, asking Letty to follow him into a private room. Letty got up and went to follow him, grabbing Dom's hand a gently tugging it, silently asking him to go with her. Dom obeyed and went with Letty and the doctor to the private room.

"Maybe you should take a seat," the doctor suggested, motioning to the chairs littered around the room.

"I'm fine standing thank you; can we get to what you want to tell me?" Letty pushed impatiently.

"Okay. Ms Ortiz has suffered a serious blow to her head which as affected her brain activity. It also started a bleed. We were unable to reach that bleed and stop it in time."

"I'm sorry I don't think I quite understand what you're saying."

"MS Ortiz unfortunately passed around five minutes ago, I am very sorry for your loss," the doctor looked sympathetically at Letty as she stood there in silence for a minute.

"Please leave," Letty finally choked out. She could feel her heart slowly beginning to beat faster and her hands were starting to shake. Her eyes became blurry and she wasn't able to splutter out any words other than, "please go."

The doctor looked at Letty in concern and Dom gave him a look. The doctor left and Letty collapsed into Dom's arms, the tears falling from her eyes as she buried her head into his shoulder. Dom wrapped his arms around her body, keeping her tight against him as she shook.

"Why did it have to be her?" Letty questioned, her voice broken and uneven. Why did it have to be her mother? Why couldn't it have been someone else?

"I don't know but you can pull through this, you're a fighter. You've proved that already. You'll be supported at the centre and mum can help and I'm sure Neela will have your back."

"But I was meant to look after her and I failed," Letty wailed. Tears were now starting to fall out of her eyes like a dam into a river, her emotions running into overdrive as a violent coughing fit started and shook her body even more.

"You didn't fail, you weren't there. You had no way of controlling it. You listen to me," Dom said, tilting Letty's face until he was looking in her eyes. "This was not your fault, okay?"

Letty nodded, the only bodily function she seemed to be able to do.

* * *

Dom led Letty back to her room and the other patients stared as the young girl's tear stained cheeks were still slightly visible under her ducked head. Neela went to rush over but Dom shook his head, silently letting Neela know that now wasn't the time. He walked Letty down the corridor and pushed open her door, guiding her to her bed.

"Neela was worried about you, I wasn't sure whether you wanted her to know yet or not," Dom started, sitting Letty down and closing the door behind him.

"Not yet, I haven't even processed it in my own mind yet, let alone telling people," Letty said, starting to tear up again.

"That's fine, nobody is telling anyone without your say so. Is there anything you want me to do?"

"Can you just stay with me? Just for a little bit until I get comfortable. You don't have to, I know your friend is still in the ER."

"I rang one of my other mates, he's there with him now. I will be here for you as long as you need me. That's a promise."

"Can you get me some water please?" Letty asked.

"Yeah."

As Dom went, Letty grabbed her pyjamas and quickly changed. She washed and styled her hair into a rough ponytail so it was off her face and brushed her teeth. When Dom got back she was in bed, the covers up to her chin.

"Thanks," Letty said as Dom put the water on the side. She shuffled over and patted the space beside her. "Will you lay with me?"

Dom looked at Letty for exact conformation before kicking off his shoes and climbed onto the bed, laying beside Letty and curling his arm around her head. He adjusted his body with hesitation of over stepping the line but Letty only wiggled into him further. Spotting the photographs on the wall, Dom mentioned them to Letty and she smiled, the motion sad yet carrying a hint of happiness, like she was reminiscing about older, happier times.

"That's one of my favourite pictures," Letty said, directing it at the one stuck on the wall. "I was eight when that was taken."

_2005_

_Letty and her friend, Isabella, ran around her back yard armed with water pistols. It was a hot summers day and Lena had arranged a play date while she chatted to Isabella's mum, Tracey. Lena had blown up a small paddling pool for Letty earlier in the week and her and Isabella had been using it before hunting down some old water pistols in the shed. They had used the water from the pool to fill them up and were now running around shooting each other with bursts of water._

"_I'll be back," Letty shouted, running into the house._

"_Who does she think she is? Arnold Schwarzenegger," Lena joked to Tracey, the women sharing a laugh. "Be careful, make sure you don't slip," Lena called to Letty._

"_I've got them," Letty shouted, carrying a handful of balloons and the attachment for the hose. "Mama, can we use the hose to fill these up?"_

"_Yeah, let me come and sort it out for you," Lena said, getting up from her seat and heading over to the hose._

_Letty and Isabella rushed after her and Letty passed her the attachment. It took them a few times to work out how much water they needed to make a good sized balloon but still be able to tie the balloon and for it not to break under the water pressure from the hose. Letty went a grabbed two buckets from the shed, one for her and one for Isabella so they would have their own stock of balloons to fight with._

"_Letty, pass me the buckets please," Lena asked._

_Letty passed Lena the buckets and the older woman filled up the balloons, equally sharing them between the two girls. Once it was finished, they discussed bases and Lena dragged the buckets over before going back to put back the hose and watch the girls. They got a last chance to fill up their pistols before battle officially commenced. _

"_Letty, are you ready?" Lena asked._

"_Yes!"_

"_Isabella, are you ready?"_

"_Yes!"_

"_Okay, three, two, one, go."_

_The two girls reached into their buckets and began to throw their balloons. After realising that they couldn't throw as far as they thought they could, they started to pile them into their arms. Letty grabbed a couple and moved around the yard, inching closer to Isabella while she had her eyesight directed at her bucket. Taking a chance, Letty launched her balloon and it hit Isabella on the back, the material bursting and the water spreading all over Isabella and the grass. Shrieking, Isabella lifted her head and launched one back, missing Letty by inches._

"_That was a good shot," Lena said to Tracey. It brought a smile to both of their faces watching their daughters interact with each other._

"_I would say lucky," Tracey replied, clearly routing for Isabella._

"_Ahh," Letty screamed as a well placed balloon exploded off her head. Isabella laughed and ran behind Tracey and Lena. Tracey jumped up and ran into the house, worried about getting soaked. Lena, however, stayed where she was. Under cover, Tracey pulled her camera from her bag and poised it ready for when Isabella got hit. Isabella sheltered behind Lena and Letty ran forward, chucking her balloon into Lena's chest._

"_Oh my God," Lena screamed, jumping up from her seat. Tracey laughed from the sidelines at the photograph she had just taken. Isabella was crouched behind Lena while the older woman pulled a face as the splash was caught just at the right second and Letty was smiling near the edge of the frame._

_Friday 3__rd__ October 2014 (Continued)_

"So you were quite the little terror during your childhood," Dom asked, his fingers running down Letty's arm. The hairs on her arm were beginning to stand up and goose bumps were starting to appear.

"You could say that," Letty replied, her voice soft and her eyes drooping. The gentle movement was slowly lulling her to sleep and it seemed that the darkness could not wait to consume her.

"I think you could do with some sleep," Dom suggested, starting to move off the bed.

"No, please don't leave me. Just stay with me," Letty pleaded. She could not deal with being left alone.

"Okay, don't worry, I'm here."

* * *

_Saturday 4__th__ October 2014_

Letty walked along the corridor and into Gisele's office. Her shoulders were hunched over and her head was almost laying on her chest it was so low. Gisele's expression told her that she hadn't expected Letty that day but her wide, open arms led Letty in. Letty took a seat and accepted Gisele's offer of a cup of tea.

"I wasn't really expecting you today," Gisele admitted. "Sofia told me what happened and I assumed that you would not be coming."

"My life can't just stop because of it. I want to make her proud and do what I need to do to make that happen. I don't want to sit here and cry because it's not going to bring her back or help me in any way."

"It's okay to have a good cry. You can't hold it in forever."

Letty stayed silent and took a big gulp from her tea. The warm liquid ran down her throat and left a warm sensation behind. Gisele looked at Letty and a wave of empathy flooded her body. She knew what it was like to lose a parent. Losing her mum so young had meant that Gisele never really had many memories to cherish and not so much to miss about her but losing her mother aged seventeen, Letty was losing a key part of her life.

"I think the crying will come later," Letty said. "Right now I'm focussing on the important things."

"Like your session with Owen? I was planning on talking about that on Wednesday so if you're up to coming then we could go over it?"

"That sounds like a good idea. I didn't cut yesterday," Letty confided in Gisele. "I didn't even think about it."

"Letty, that's amazing," Gisele gushed. Since she had found out about Lena's death she was worried that Letty would revert to cutting, especially after harming herself after Lena's admission to hospital.

"I don't know why but I didn't. I don't know whether it was because I was in shock or what but I didn't and I sort of feel proud of myself in a weird kind of way."

"You should feel proud of yourself. I'm proud of you and I'm sure everyone else is too, that includes your mum."

"I hope she will be. She gave up so much for me I just want to pay her back and I think that was the first step."

"It is. Do you have a session with Dom today?"

"Yep."

"Okay, you can get off then, I'll see you tomorrow at the group session."

Letty left Gisele's office and went back to her room. She had just thrown some clothes on over her pyjamas as she had overslept so she peeled them off and put on some fresh gym clothes, choosing to shower later. Grabbing her bag, Letty decided to head to the gym early and get in a few extra punches while she was waiting for Dom to arrive. Walking to the gym, she was surprised to find Dom already there.

"I thought you weren't coming until later," Letty regarded as she dropped her bag by the door.

"Things were a lot quicker than I thought they would be so I decided to get here early and set the equipment up. What are you doing here?"

"Just thought I'd get a few rounds with the punch bag in but as you're here, we can just start if you want?"

"Sounds good to me, if I can just hook these wires up to you."

Letty stood with her arms open as Dom moved his way around her body and hooked her up to the machine. He then got her to drink a bottle of Lucozade so he could manage whether the drink had any effects to her body in the way that it worked. After collecting his data, Dom unhooked Letty.

"Do you want to do some more work or leave it there for the day?" Dom asked, holding up his equipment gently and storing it safely in its bag.

"Do punching bags sound alright? I have a sudden urge to punch something very hard."

"Punching bags sound good."

Dom and Letty moved over to the punch bags and Letty pulled on her gloves while Dom put on his pads. Standing ready, Dom was slightly thrown back by the force in Letty's punch and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Like I said; an urge to punch something."

Letty went back to the pads and they carried on with a rhythm, Dom occasionally adding in comments about the position of her feet and how she was holding her body. After around half an hour Letty called time on their session and sat down, panting as she peeled off her gloves.

"I feel a lot better now," Letty said as Dom settled next to her.

"I bet you do. I never knew you had that in you, we'll be doing that every week now."

"I'd like to hope I won't have that urge every week but I'll try and put in some effort."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Dom offered.

"No. But thank you anyway. I think Gisele has it pretty much covered."

"Alright, well I need to head off and see mum so I'll see you at some point. I've got my trip to New York next week so we won't have one on Saturday but I'll catch up with you at some point in between."

"That sounds good, see ya."

As Dom grabbed his bag and walked off, Letty fell onto her back so she was looking up at the ceiling. She took a deep breath and let her hair down from its ponytail, running her fingers through the tresses.

"Hi, mum," she said, staring at the ceiling. It was weird for her to be speaking to an empty space but she figured it would be worth a go. "I hope you're watching me right now. I know you would say to stay away from boys that don't have your approval but I know that you would like him. Dom is so sweet and such a good friend to me. He was the one that found me when I ran off from the convenience store last month. I'm helping him with his uni project and he's helping me get my mind off things, not that he knows that. And he's lovely, really lovely. I think I may even like him. But I'll speak to you later, I need to ring Nan soon. Bye."

Letty pulled herself into a sitting position and walked out the gym, grabbing her bag behind her.

* * *

_Sunday 5__th__ October 2014_

The group session was up and running and a light conversation filled the room. It was the average weekly update, everybody had had their turn at sharing their news, and now only Letty was left. The group stared at Letty, everyone aware of what had happened over the last few days but no one knowing whether she was actually going to mention anything about it. After a few minutes, Letty took her turn to stand up.

"As you know, this last week has been a bit of a rollercoaster for me; I think shit would be the easiest way to describe it. My mum was attacked earlier this week and then she died on Friday. I want to tell you that I actually cut on Tuesday. I don't know why but it gave me a sense of control and power over what could happen to me as I had no power over what had happened to my mum."

As Letty explained the rest of the group listened, all of them silent and some listening deeply as they listening to Letty. Her voice was filled with emotion and it was easy for the others to be captivated into her story.

"Afterwards, I felt good about myself. Despite the fact that I knew that I had taken so many steps backwards after coming so far, I felt good that I had done it, just like the old times. And then a couple of hours after I started to feel like I'd done the wrong thing. It showed me that the initial reaction isn't always the best one to have," Letty explained. As she carried on with her story she started it speak with more confidence, as if she was reading from a book as opposed to reliving her week.

"Letty, can I ask a question?" Lucile asked quietly.

"Of course," Letty said. She knew everyone had questions and who was she to refuse them the answers?

"Did you cut after your mum died? I know that it's quite a personal question but," Lucile trailed off.

"This is the proudest bit of my week I think because no, I didn't. I don't know whether it was because I'd had such regret after doing it on Tuesday but I didn't touch any part of my body with a razor. To be honest with you I didn't even think about doing it. And I feel proud of myself for that. I managed to avoid the one support system that I had built up for myself over the last few years and it felt amazing; I'm not going to lie."

As Letty finished, she sat down and Gisele immediately stood up, starting a round of applause. Letty went red and ducked her head into her shoulder, not keen on the attention being directed towards her. In her opinion, she didn't deserve a round of applause from everyone else. She would accept one from Gisele as her counsellor but from everyone else it felt weird. She had still cut.

"I want to start by saying that what Letty has just done is incredibly brave," Gisele began. "I was surprised to see her at her session yesterday after everything that had happened and to confide in me was remarkable but to stand here, in front of all of you, and explain that. What Letty has shown us today is that you can have a step back and use it to your advantage. Not every step back is an obstacle. Now that we've finished, let's move onto part three."

The session continued as it normally did and nothing more was raised about Letty or Lena. Gisele arranged the pairings again and Letty and Neela did not have the opportunity to talk to each other. Once the third and final part of the session was over, Gisele kept Neela behind while Letty went straight back to her room. She was meant to be ringing her Nan later that day but she couldn't be dealing with her Nan's fussy behaviour so she decided to put it off until tomorrow unless her Nan made the decision to ring her later.

"Letty, I brought you something to eat," Neela called through Letty's door.

Letty lifted her head from the pillow and looked at the clock, her eyes widening as she looked at the time. Jumping up, she opened the door and invited Neela in, her love for Neela rising as she looked at the plate of food that she had brought with her.

"Gisele noticed you didn't go to dinner so she arranged a plate for you," Neela said, sitting down on the edge of Letty's bed.

"Thank you, I was just having a nap and I guess I was a little bit more tired than I thought," Letty thanked. "I don't know what it is but this food tastes a lot when you're in the comfort of your own bed. Do you want some?"

"No thanks," Neela replied. "I had some earlier. I will have to try that one day. Maybe I might come down with a hideous virus and I'll have to be served dinner in bed."

"And then there is the possibility that I will catch said virus from you and have to have the same treatment. I think we could make something out of this," Letty suggested, taking a hearty bite out of her dinner. "Oh my God, that's hot. Can you pass that water on my side please?"

Neela passed Letty her water and they carried on with a basic conversation. Neela had not really seen Letty much so the chatted about everything but Lena's death. She had seen Dom lead Letty in on Friday night and didn't want to bring up any emotions so she decided to take a different angle on it.

"So Dom, I've seen you with him on a few occasions recently. What did he want on Thursday?" Neela asked. She was clearly digging for gossip and it didn't take Letty a second to work that out.

"Nothing is going on with me and Dom. All he said was that he might be late to yesterday's training session because he had some bits to do before and he might be caught up with them. Nothing is going on, I promise you."

"I don't believe you, you looked pretty cosy."

Letty looked blankly at Neela. "You are currently trying to pull stuff from thin air where there's nothing to find."

Neela wiggled her eyebrows at Letty and they both broke into hysterical laughter. Other than Dom, it was nice to talk to someone who didn't care that she had just lost her mother two days previously or thought carefully at their use of words. All Letty wanted was a simple conversation where she could talk about anything and everything and with Neela; she could do that, that was why she was her best friend here.

"I forgot to ask you, how did your session with Owen go?" Neela asked. She had given up on refusing Letty's food and they now both eating off her plate.

"It went really well. I really enjoyed it so Sofia is setting up another session for our non shopping days so I can continue doing that," Letty replied, the excitement clear in her voice.

"So I guess our lazy days are done for the immediate future then," Neela said sadly. They often stayed inside of their rooms for the day and talked for hours on end. Sometimes about the centre, their lessons and if they had found out any new gossip they were yet to update each other but other times it was about their home lives, often explaining the pictures that filled their rooms. Like Letty, Neela held onto many of her memories through photographs.

"Unfortunately. Although we can do them at other times, we just might need to make them a little bit shorter. On shopping days we could still have our lazy days but only lazy mornings so that we can go out. At least we'll have something," Letty suggested.

"I think I can deal with that compromise. I don't think I could go completely without them."

"That was delicious," Letty said in regards to her dinner.

"I'll go take the plate back and then I shall return."

"You don't have to do that, I'll go."

"It's fine, I might even come back armed with crisps."

"Well, if you're absolutely sure about it. I wouldn't want to argue with you," Letty said, instantly changing her mind at the idea of crisps.

"Of course, don't worry about me; as long as you've got your crisps."

"Well obviously," Letty said, smiling cheekily at Neela.

"Idiot."

**R&amp;R**


End file.
